THE 

LAND  OF  DESOLATION: 

BEING  A  PERSONAL  NARRATIVE  OF 

OBSERVATION   AND  ADVENTURE   IN 

GREENLAND. 


BY  ISAAC   I?"  HAYES,  M.D., 
// 

SOLI)     MEDALIST     OF     THE     ROYAL     GEOGRAPHICAL     SOCIETY,    LONDON,    AND     OF     THE 

8OOIET&    DE    GEOGEAPHIE,   PARIS;     HONORARY    MEMBER    OF    THE    GEOGRAPHICAL 

SOCIETIES   OF  BERLIN  AND   OF   ITALY  ;    AUTHOR  OF    "THE  OPEN   POLAR  SEA," 

"AN  ARCTIC  BOAT  JOURNEY,"  "  CAST  AWAY  IN  THE  COLD,"  ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED. 


NEW    YORK: 

HARPER  £  BROTHERS,  PUBLISHERS, 

FRANKLIN     SQUARE. 
1872. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1871,  by 

HARPER    &    BROTHERS, 

IB  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


Persons  Represented. 


An  Artist  in  search  of  the  picturesque. 

An  Assistant  given  to  caricature. 

A  Photographer,  called  "Colonel." 

Another,  who  was  "Major." 

A  Professor  who  made  collections. 

A  Prince  who  enjoyed  himself. 

A  great  Hunter. 

A  roaring,  tearing  tar  of  a  Captain. 

A  Mate  with  an  inquiring  turn  of  mind. 

A  Sagaman  who  made  history. 

A  Parson. 

The  Belle  of  a  Ball  in  seal-skin  pantaloons. 

Other  Ladies  in  the  same  condition. 

Also  a  Boat's  Crew. 

Parliamentarians  who  smelled  fishy. 

Others  equally  agreeable. 

The  northernmost  White  Man  and  his  family. 

Numerous  Governors. 

Officers  and  Sailors  unlimited. 

A  Raven. 

An  Antiquarian. 

A  Witch. 

A  Doctor. 

Tw  Enemies,  called  "Cook"  and  " Steward." 

A  Cabin-boy  who  woke  up  once. 

Ladies  from  Denmark. 

A  great  many  other  People. 

Dogs,  Polar  Bears,  and  other  Animals. 

A  Devil's  Thumb. 


PREFACE. 


THE  following  pages  are  a  record  of  a  visit  to  Green- 
land, made  in  the  summer  of  1869,  with  a  small  party 
of  friends,  in  the  steam-yacht  of  Mr.  William  Bradford, 
whose  widely-celebrated  pictures  of  Arctic  scenery  have 
received  such  deserved  commendation  ;  for,  whether  we 
consider  the  difficulties  of  the  subject  which  that  artist 
has  undertaken,  or  the  unusual  exposures  and  hazards 
he  has  encountered,  his  success  has  been  commensurate 
with  his  zeal,  talent,  and  unflagging  energy. 

Since  Mr.  Bradford  was  desirous  only  of  obtaining  ma- 
terials for  his  easel,  the  voyage  was  a  leisurely  one,  being 
mostly  near  the  coast,  where  halts  were  from  time  to 
time  made  at  such  places  as  presented  special  attractions 
to*  the  painter.  The  summer  was  therefore  devoted  to 
the  study  of  the  picturesque  rather  than  to  the  scien- 
tific ;  yet  numerous  opportunities  were  afforded  in  the 
latter  direction,  especially  with  respect  to  observing  the 
formation  of  Greenland  glaciers  and  icebergs — subjects 
which  have  not  hitherto  received  much  attention.  Fa- 
cilities never  before  enjoyed  by  Americans  were  also 


8  PREFACE. 

obtained  for  visiting  the  site  of  the  colonies  of  the  an- 
cient Northmen,  who  occupied  that  country  from  the 
tenth  to  the  fifteenth  centuries,  and  whose  restless  love 
of  adventure  led  them  even  so  far  from  their  native 
homes  as  our  own  shores,  at  least  five  hundred  years 
before  the  renowned  voyage  of  Columbus. 

Our  range  of  the  Greenland  coast  was  more  than  a 
thousand  miles,  terminating  a  good  way  beyond  the  last 
outpost  of  civilization  on  the  globe,  in  the  midst  of  the 
much  dreaded  "  ice-pack"  of  Melville  Bay. 


CONTENTS. 


PART   THE  FIE  S  T. 

RUINS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
ICE  AND  BREAKERS 17 

CHAPTER  II. 
FREE  FROM  DANGER f 20 

CHAPTER  III. 

A   HOPEFUL   TOWN   IN   A   HOPELESS   PLACE 26 

CHAPTER  IV. 
ERIC  THE  RED 39 

CHAPTER  V. 
"THE  ARCTIC  Six" 45 

CHAPTER  VI. 

UP  THE   FlORD   IN  AN   OOMIAK , 51 

CHAPTER  VII. 
THE  RUINS  OF  ERICSFIORD 62 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  NORTHMEN  IN  GREENLAND 71 

CHAPTER  IX. 
THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA 77 

A2 


10  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  X. 
THE  LAST  MAN 82 

CHAPTER  XI. 
A  DISCONSOLATE  LOVER 92 

CHAPTER  XII. 
THE  CHURCH  AT  JULIANASHAAB 98 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT 101 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
A  GREENLAND  BALL ,.  112 


PART  THE  SECOND. 

PALACES    OF   NATURE. 

CHAPTER  I. 
ICE  AND  SNOW 125 

CHAPTER  II. 
GLACIERS  AND  ICEBERGS 129 

CHAPTER  III. 
THE  SOLITARY  HUT  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT 137 

CHAPTER  IV. 
THE  GLACIER 146 

CHAPTER  V. 
CROSSING  THE  GLACIER 153 

CHAPTER  VI. 
SPECULATIONS.............. .  166 


CONTENTS.  11 

CHAPTER  VII.  PAGE 

MEASUREMENTS  OF  GLACIERS 172 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
THE  BIRTH  OF  AN  ICEBERG 175 

CHAPTER  IX. 
A  NARROW  ESCAPE 179 

CHAPTER  X. 
ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED 186 

CHAPTER  XI. 
MAN  versus  MOSQUITOES 197 

CHAPTER  XII. 
A  PICNIC  ON  THE  GLACIER 201 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
BOUND  FOR  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE 206 


PART   THE   THIRD. 

UNDER    THE    MIDNIGHT    SUN. 

CHAPTER  I. 
ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE 215 

CHAPTER  II. 
BEYOND  CIVILIZATION t 240 

CHAPTER  III. 
ICE-NAVIGATION 253 

CHAPTER  IV. 
HUNTING  BY  STEAM 263 


12  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V.  PA6E 

AMONG  THE  ICE-FIELDS  OF  MELVILLE  BAY 284 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  LAST  WHITE  MAN 294 

CHAPTER  VII. 
THE  FIORD  OF  AUKPADLARTOK 309 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
UPERNAVIK 318 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Disco  ISLAND 328 

CHAPTER  X. 
JACOBSHAVN 339 

CHAPTER  XI. 
A  WEEK  AT  GODHAVN ..  348 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

THE  "PANTHER"  AMONG  THE  ICEBERGS Frontispiece. 

VlEW  OP  JULIANASHAAB 27 

THE  OOMIAK  AND  CREW 46 

VIEW  OF  THE  OLD  NORSE  RUINS 63 

GROUND-PLAN  OF  RUINS 67 

CONCORDIA  AT  THE  PlCNIC 93 

A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT  IN  SESSION 104 

CONCORDIA  DRESSED  FOR  THE  BALL 119 

FRONT  VIEW  OF  THE  GLACIER.... 147 

CROSSING  THE  CREVASSE  ON  AN  ICE-BRIDGE 160 

MAP  OF  THE  GLACIER 162 

THE  GLACIER  OF  SERMITSIALIK 167 

VERTICAL  SECTION  OF  GLACIER 170 

THE  KRYOLITE  MINE  AT  ARSUT  FIORD 207 

THE  PEAK  OF  KRESARSOAK 221 

ENTERING  THE  FIORD 224 

THE  LUMME  OF  THE  ARCTIC  SEA 226 

SHOOTING  LUMME 228 

ESAC 231 

ESAC'S  HUT 233 

THE  GOVERNOR  AND  FAMILY 238 

VIEW  OF  UPERNAVIK  AND  KRESARSOAK 241 

EIDER-DUCKS 246 

THE  POLAR  BEAR 254 

SEALS 256 

THE  DEVIL'S  THUMB 261 

THE  PANTHER  AFTER  THE  BEARS 268 

THE  CAPTAIN  AFTER  THE  BEAR 278 

MOORED  TO  A  FLOE  IN  MELVILLE  BAY /..  287 

THE  ICEBERG  CASTLE...,  291 


14  ILL  USTMA  TIONti. 

PAGE 

WE  STEAM  AWAY  FROM  THE  MlDNIGHT  SUN 295 

THE  MOST  NORTHERN  HOUSE  ON  THE  GLOBE 299 

JENSEN  AND  HIS  FAMILY 303 

AN  ARCTIC  WITCH 307 

WE   GO   THROUGH   AN   ICEBERG  TO   CALL   ON   PHILIP 310 

PHILIP,  THE  HUNTER,  AND  HIS  SONS 312 

THE  RAVEN 317 

HANS  AND  HIS  FAMILY 322 

THE  GREAT  AUK 337 

ICEBERG  IN  JACOBSHAVN  FIORD 346 


Out  upon  timej    it  will  leave  no  more 

Of  the  things  to  come  than  the  things  before ! 

Out  upon  time !    who  forever  will  leave 

But  enough  of  the  past  for  the  future  to  grieve 

O'er  that  which  hath  been,  and  o'er  that  which  must  be; 

What  we  have  seen  our  sons  shall  see — 

Remnants  of  things  that  have  passed  away, 

Fragments  of  stone,  reared  by  creatures  of  clay." 

BYRON'S  Siege  of  Corinth. 


THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

PART  THE  FIRST. 

RUINS. 

m __ 

CHAPTER  I. 

ICE  AND  BREAKERS. 

ON  a  gloomy  night  in  the  month  of  July,  1585,  the  ship 
Sunshine,  of  fifty  tons,  "  fitted  out,"  as  the  old  chronicles 
inform  us,  "  by  divers  opulent  merchants  of  London,  for 
the  discovery  of  a  north-west  passage,  came,  in  a  thick  and 
heavy  mist,  to  a  place  where  there  was  a  mighty  roaring 
as  of  waves  dashing  on  a  rocky  shore."  The  captain  of 
this  ship  was  brave  old  John  Davis,  who,  when  he  had  dis- 
covered his  perilous  situation,  put  off  in  a  boat,  and  thereby 
discovered  that  his  ship  was  "  embayed  in  fields  and  hills 
of  ice,  the  crashing  together  of  which  made  the  fearful 
sounds  that  he  had  heard."  The  ship  drifted  helplessly 
through  the  night,  and  when  the  morning  dawned,  "  the 
people  saw  the  tops  of  mountains  white  with  snow,  and  of 
a  sugar-loaf  shape,  standing  above  the  clouds ;  while  at 
their  base  the  land  was  deformed  and  rocky,  and  the  shore 
was  everywhere  beset  with  ice,  which  made  such  irksome 
noise  that  the  land  was  called  '  The  Land  of  Desolation.' " 

On  a  gloomy  night  in  the  month  of  July,  1869,  the  ship 
Panther,  of  three  hundred  and  fifty  tons,  fitted  out  for  a 


18  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

summer  voyage  by  a  party  in  pursuit  of  pleasure,  came  in 
like  manner,  through  a  thick  and  heavy  mist,  to  a  place 
where  there  was  a  mighty  roaring  as  of  waves  dashing  on 
a  rocky  shore.  The  captain  of  this  ship  was  John  Bartlett, 
who,  when  he  had  discovered  his  perilous  situation,  put  off 
in  a  boat,  and  returned  with  the  knowledge  that  the  Pan- 
ther, like  the  Sunshine  of  old,  was  embayed  in  "  fields  and 
hills  of  ice,"  the  crashing  together  of  which  made  the  fearful 
sounds  that  he  had  heard ;  and  then,  when  the  morning 
dawned,  "  the  people  saw  the  tops  of  mountains  white  with 
snow,  and  of  a  sugar-loaf  shape,  standing  above  the  clouds ; 
while  at  their  base  the  land  was  deformed  and  rocky,"  and 
the  shore  was  everywhere  beset  with  ice,  which  made  such 
"irksome  noise,"  that  the  people  knew  their  ship  had  drift- 
ed to  the  self-same  spot  where  the  Sunshine  had  drifted 
nearly  three  hundred  years  before,  and  that  the  land  before 
them  was  Davis's  "  Land  of  Desolation." 

A  mysterious  land  to  them,  and  one  around  which  clung 
many  marvellous  associations.  Its  legends  had  been  the 
wonder  of  their  boyhood;  its  grandeur  was  now  their  ad- 
miration. They  had  heard  of  it  as  a  land  of  fable  ;  tradi- 
tion had  peopled  it  with  dwarfs  and  giants;  history  re- 
corded that  a  race  of  men  once  occupied  it  whose  fleets  of 
ships  traversed  the  waters  in  which  their  own  vessel  was 
now  so  grievously  beset,  bearing  merchandise  to  hamlets 
of  peace  and  plenty.  Their  eyes  naturally  sought  a  spot 
whereon  to  locate  the  home  of  this  ancient  people ;  but 
nothing  could  they  discover  save  sterile  rocks  and  desert 
wastes  of  ice.  They  saw  dark  cliffs  which  rose  threatening- 
ly above  them  abruptly  from  the  sea,  and  beyond  these 
their  eye  wandered  away  into  the  interior,  which  the  snows 
of  centuries  had  converted  into  a  vast  plain  of  desolate 
whiteness.  Returning  from  this  limitless  perspective,  the 
eye  fell  upon  the  troubled  waters.  There  were  no  signs  of 


ICE  AND  BREAKERS.  19 

life  anywhere :  desolation  frowned  on  every  side.  Yet  the 
spectacle  was  sublime  ;  and,  as  if  to  render  that  sublimity 
the  more  complete,  there  was  added  soon  an  aspect  of  the 
terrible.  This  came  in  the  form  of  a  gale  of  wind,  which 
speedily  rose  to  a  tempest.  Rain,  hail,  and  snow  swept 
down  upon  the  ship,  and  every  distant  object  was  hidden 
except  when  the  storm-curtain  was  occasionally  rent  asun- 
der, and  a  mountain  peak  was  exposed,  with  the  clouds 
breaking  against  its  sides.  The  creaking  and  groaning  ice 
was  around  them  everywhere,  and  an  occasional  iceberg  of 
enormous  magnitude  broke  through  the  gloom,  and,  while 
moving  on  through  the  angry  and  troubled  waters,  re- 
ceived with  cold  indifference  the  fierce  lashings  of  the  sea. 


20  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  II. 

FREE  FROM  DANGER. 

I  WAS  a  passenger  on  board  the  Panther,  and  shared 
with  my  companions  the  emotions  which  the  Land  of  Des- 
olation first  inspired. 

Under  ordinary  circumstances,  there  can  be  no  more 
comfortable  situation  on  board  a  ship  than  that  of  passen- 
ger. You  are  not  expected  to  know  any  thing,  and,  if 
wise,  you  will  not  want  to  know  any  thing.  You  are  con- 
tent to  trust  to  the  captain,  who  is  presumed  to  be  quite 
competent  to  look  to  the  safety  of  his  ship,  and  therefore 
to  your  own.  So  far  as  human  ingenuity  can  possibly  be 
exercised  to  escape  danger,  his,  you  are  sure,  will  be,  and 
you  trust  to  him  as  to  a  superior  being — at  least  you 
know  he  has  all  the  interest  at  stake  that  you  have,  and 
something  more ;  for  the  handling  of  a  ship  in  a  storm  is 
like  the  manoeuvring  of  troops  on  the  field  of  battle ;  suc- 
cess brings  glory  to  the  commander,  and  the  acquisition 
of  it  is  perhaps  all  the  more  precious  that  it  is  not  shared 
with  any  body. 

In  our  case  there  was  a  still  further  motive  to  confi- 
dence. Our  captain  owned  one  half  the  ship,  which  was 
a  Newfoundland  screw-steamer,  and  was  built  unusually 
strong.  Besides  this,  we  had  confidence  in  his  judg- 
ment, which  was  the  next  best  thing  to  confidence  in 
his  caution ;  and  then,  to  crown  all,  he  was  a  thoroughly 
good  fellow.  To  quote  the  gentleman  who  devoted  him- 
self to  the  duties  of  sagaman  for  the  cruise,  "  A  roaring, 
tearing,  jolly  tar  was  he,  as  ever  boxed  the  compass  on  the 


FREE  FROM  DANGER.  21 

sea."  During  the  eight  days  occupied  in  coming  over 
from  St.  John's,  we  had  all  conceived  a  high  opinion  of  his 
qualities.  He  might  be  sometimes  a  little  rash  and  ven- 
turesome, but  rashness,  as  every  body  knows,  is  a  safer 
quality  than  timidity ;  and  we  bore  in  recollection  the  old 
saying,  "  Nothing  venture,  nothing  have."  "We  might,  per- 
haps, have  found  a  little  fault  with  him  at  first  for  having 
run  us  in  so  close  to  the  Land  of  Desolation  without  halt- 
ing for  daylight  and  better  weather;  but  then  we  all 
knew  that  to  "  heave  to "  was  something  which  the  cap- 
tain had  a  great  horror  of,  and  he  spoke  of  heaving  to  with 
such  constant  disrespect  that  the  people  generally  had 
conceived  the  idea  that  it  was  a  peculiarly  terrible  thing 
to  indulge  in.  It  seemed,  therefore,  that  we  were  all  right, 
and  must  necessarily  escape  shipwreck,  even  when  the 
peril  appeared  greatest — when,  for  instance,  we  found  our- 
selves threatened  with  an  island  rock  on  the  one  side  and 
an  island  of  ice  on  the  other,  in  a  sea  white  with  foam,  and 
breaking  everywhere  so  wildly  that  the  captain's  trumpet- 
voice  could  scarce  be  heard  above  the  tumult. 

The  worst  of  it  was,  we  did  not  know  within  fifty  miles 
of  where  we  were.  "  There,"  said  the  captain,  triumph- 
antly, with  his  outspread  hand  upon  the  chart  of  Bafiin's 
Bay,  covering  at  least  ten  thousand  square  miles  of  land 
and  sea,  "  There's  where  we  are !"  It  was  certain,  at  all 
events,  that  we  had  drifted  within  a  line  of  skerries,  for 
the  waves  broke  on  all  sides,  and  where  the  rocks  did  not 
keep  us  from  going,  the  ice  did. 

We  had  made  the  land  with  the  intention  of  seeking  a 
modern  fishing-station  of  Danes  and  Esquimaux,  which  we 
knew  to  lie  somewhere  on  that  part  of  the  coast ;  but 
where  we  could  not  even  guess.  As  well  seek  charity  in 
a  bigot  as  hunt  for  a  harbor  in  such  weather,  on  a  coast 
where  there  are  neither  light-houses  nor  pilots. 


W  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Yet  we  knew  that  human  beings  might  be  started 
somewhere  if  we  only  could  free  ourselves  from  our  un- 
comfortable predicament,  and  the  storm  only  would  hold 
up.  But  it  would  not  and  did  not  until  after  we  had, 
without  exactly  knowing  how  it  came  about,  at  length 
found  ourselves  in  the  open  sea,  and  had  given  the  Land 
of  Desolation  a  wide  berth. 

The  weather  clearing  finally,  the  Panther  was  point- 
ed for  a  promising  opening  in  the  belt  of  ice  which  beset 
the  shore ;  and  now,  without  much  risk  or  difficulty,  we 
got  behind  a  cluster  of  islands  not  far  from  the  main-land 
and  a  good  way  to  the  south  of  where  we  had  been  so 
much  troubled. 

Here  there  was  no  ice  at  all,  and  we  began  to  look  up 
the  fishing-town.  First  of  all  the  signal-gun  was  fired, 
and  the  Panther  whistled  her  loudest.  This  woke  the 
echoes,  and  startled  some  sea-gulls,  but  nothing  more. 
Then  we  crept  cautiously  along,  passing  island  after  isl- 
and, the  Panther  whistling  constantly  and  the  guns  firing 
occasionally. 

Presently  we  saw  something  dark  moving  upon  the 
water,  which  appeared  to  have  the  body  of  a  beast,  and 
the  head  and  shoulders  of  a  man.  It  might  be  a  marine 
centaur !  who  could  tell  ?  In  fact,  we  rather  expected  to 
see  some  such  monsters  long  before ;  and  if  the  sea  had 
been  alive  with  them,  we  would  not  have  been,  I  think, 
much  surprised. 

"  Hi !  hi !"  was  the  first  greeting  of  this  strange-looking 
creature,  with  a  voice  that  sounded  very  human ;  "  Hi !  hi !" 
and  afterwards  he  shouted,  "  Me  Julianashaab  pilot !"  an 
announcement  which  greatly  delighted  us,  even  if  the  pilot 
did  come  in  such  very  questionable  shape. 

He  was  not  long  in  arriving  alongside,  and  then,  after 
getting  the  bight  of  a  rope  under  each  end  of  him,  we 


FREE  FROM  DANGER.  23 

hauled  him  in  on  deck,  whereupon  the  head  and  shoulders 
speedily  shook  themselves  out  from  the  body,  and  our  ma- 
rine centaur  stood  forth  with  the  proper  complement  of 
legs  to  show  his  affinity  to  man. 

To  see  a  pilot  shed  himself  thus  is  not  to  increase  one's 
confidence  in  him.  And  then  his  looks  were  by  no  means 
prepossessing.  A  broad  face  that  was  all  cheeks,  except 
what  was  mouth,  with  the  least  speck  of  a  nose,  and  noth- 
ing to  mention  in  the  way  of  eyes,  might  be  a  curious 
study  for  a  naturalist,  but  was  hardly  the  sort  of  thing 
one  seems  to  stand  in  need  of  when  he  seeks  a  harbor  along 
a  very  ugly  coast.  And  then  his  body  was  all  covered 
with  hair,  and  was  all  wet,  as  if  he  had  just  risen  from  the 
bottom  of  the  sea.  Besides,  he  smelt  fishy.  Yet  this  was 
clearly  the  best  we  could  do  if  we  ever  meant  to  get  into 
port,  and,  disregarding  his  unprepossessing  appearance,  the 
captain  called  him  aft  and  ordered  him  to  point  out  Ju- 
lianashaab. 

"Eh,  tyma !"  he  answered;  and  off"  he  started  for  the 
bridge,  and  off  soon  started  the  Panther  under  his  direc- 
tion. 

Julianashaab  we  found  to  be  no  easy  port  to  make,  even 
with  a  marine  centaur  for  a  pilot.  The  Panther  was 
twisted  and  turned  about  so  much  among  the  islands,  and 
our  pilot  spoke  so  strangely,  and  made  so  many  strange 
gestures,  that  he  fairly  turned  the  captain's  head.  The 
captain  would  indeed  hardly  believe  that  we  were  going 
anywhere  at  all,  but  were,  on  the  contrary,  whirling  about 
for  the  temporary  amusement  of  this  creature  whom  we 
had  fished  up  out  of  salt  water. 

The  fact  is,  Julianashaab  is  some  twenty  miles  from  the 
sea,  on  the  bank  of  a  very  long  and  tortuous  frith  or  fiord, 
which  is  studded  with  islands.  Difficult  of  access  at  all 
times,  it  is  peculiarly  so  in  July,  for  then  the  ice  from  the 


'34  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Spitzbergen  side  of  Greenland  comes  drifting  down  with 
the  great  polar  current,  a  branch  of  which  sweeps  around 
Cape  Farewell  into  Davis's  Strait  and  Baffin's  Bay,  and 
proceeds  north  for  a  while  before  it  is  deflected  to  the 
westward  to  join  the  ice-incumbered  stream  that  chills  the 
region  of  Labrador,  and  bathes  the  coast  of  America  even 
to  the  Floridas.  Cape  Farewell  is  in  latitude  59°  49',  and 
Julianashaab  lies  some  eighty  miles  to  the  north  and  west 
of  it;  that  is  to  say,  in  latitude  60°  44',  or  5°  48'  south  of 
the  Arctic  circle.  It  is  not,  therefore,  much  nearer  the 
North  Pole  than  St.  Petersburg,  Russia,  though  in  a  very 
different  climate. 

It  was  fortunate  that  we  secured  even  this  strange  pilot 
when  we  did,  else  we  should  have  lain  outside  all  the 
night ;  for  there  was  a  night,  even  although  it  was  scarce 
deserving  the  name.  When  one  can  plainly  see  to  read 
by  the  light  of  the  sun  as  late  as  ten  o'clock  P.M.,  there  is 
not  much  of  a  'night  to  boast  of.  There  was  a  faint  twi- 
light even  at  midnight,  and  to  this  was  added  the  light  of 
the  moon,  which  threw  its  brightness  on  the  summits  of 
the  snow-clad  mountains,  and  trailed  its  silvery  splendors 
away  over  the  rippled  waters  of  the  fiord. 

The  scene  as  we  passed  on  was  most  impressive.  There 
is  indeed  in  a  still  arctic  night,  whether  in  the  winter  or 
summer,  a  sublimity  which  one  does  not  feel  in  a  night 
elsewhere.  We  passed  through  many  groups  of  icebergs, 
and  in  the  moonlight  their  shapes,  at  all  times  full  of 
strange  suggestions,  were  converted  into  objects  of  the 
most  fantastic  description.  The  faces  and  forms  of  men 
and  beasts  were  fashioned  there  in  the  light  and  shadow 
of  the  night,  occasionally  with  wonderful  distinctness.  As 
we  passed  on,  we  were  sometimes  in  the  cold  shelter  of  a 
cliff,  while  the  icebergs  before  us  glittered  in  a  full  blaze 
of  light,  as  if  they  were  mammoth  gems ;  again  we  would 


FREE  FROM  DANGER.  35 

pass  so  near  a  berg  that  it  seemed  but  awaiting  an  oppor- 
tunity to  topple  over  upon  and  overwhelm  us ;  and  all  the 
while  no  sounds  disturbed  the  air  but  the  monotonous  pul- 
sations of  the  steamer  and  the  hollow  gurgle  of  the  waves 
of  her  making  as  they  broke  within  the  icy  caves. 

At  length  our  pilot  told  us  we  were  approaching  our 
destination,  and  as  the  light  of  day  began  to  replace  the 
brightness  of  the  moon,  he  whirled  the  Panther  into  a  lit- 
tle bight,  and  a  few  rude  habitations,  a  flag-staff,  and  the 
belfry  of  a  little  mission  church,  appeared  before  us  on  a 
dark  rocky  hill-side. 

"  Julianashaab !"  said  our  pilot,  pointing  to  it  with  as 
much  pride  and  satisfaction  as  if  he  were  overlooking  the 
finest  city  of  the  world.  Poor  man,  he  knew  no  better ! 
He  little  dreamed  how  miserable  was  his  lot  to  be  only  a 
Julianashaaber,  and  dwell  in  peace  !  For  this  was  indeed 
his  home.  He  had  gone  down  the  fiord  hunting  seals 
and  to  gather  the  eggs  of  wild  fowl  upon  the  islands,  and 
when  he  saw  the  Panther  he  had  just  begun  his  work. 

Down  went  the  anchor  with  its  usual  rush  and  rattle, 
and  immediately  the  rocks  were  alive  with  people,  who, 
aroused  from  their  peaceful  slumbers  by  the  strange  noise, 
sallied  forth  as  suddenly  as  the  witches  from  Kirk  Allo- 
way.  Looking  forward  to  a  closer  scrutiny  of  them  when 
the  day  had  fully  come,  we  sought  our  bunks,  and,  ex- 
hausted with  the  excitement  of  the  night  and  the  con- 
stant exposure  of  the  past  few  days,  we  turned  in  to  sleep 
the  sleep  of  weariness. 

B 


26  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  III. 

A  HOPEFUL  TOWN  IN  A  HOPELESS  PLACE. 

THIS  "  Land  of  Desolation,"  to  which  we  had  come,  is 
the  Greenland  of  history  and  of  the  present  time.  All 
the  southern  part  of  it,  as  far  up  as  the  sixty-first  degree 
of  latitude,  is  called  the  "  District  of  Julianashaab,"  and 
the  town  of  Julianashaab  is  its  capital.  This  town  is  one 
of  the  most  flourishing  in  the  whole  country.  It  is,  per- 
haps, the  most  pleasantly  situated  of  all  of  them,  and, 
standing  in  a  region  full  of  historic  and  legendary  inter- 
est, it  presents  a  good  type  of  Greenland  life,  past  and 
present,  and  it  is  well  worth  looking  at. 

Being  the  residence  of  the  Governor  of  the  "  District," 
something  of  additional  importance  is  attached  to  it  on 
that  account.  Country  squires  who  come  up  to  London; 
backwoodsmen  casting  their  curious  eyes  about  them  in 
Washington;  children  on  a  holiday  excursion  to  a  neigh- 
boring village,  are  not  seized  with  greater  wonder  at 
what  they  behold,  than  is  the  hunter  from  some  remote 
station  of  the  Julianashaab  District,  when,  after  having 
braved  the  dangers  of  flood  and  field,  he  finds  himself  ob- 
serving the  latest  fashions,  and  learning  how  the  world 
moves  generally  in  the  town  of  Julianashaab.  So  much, 
therefore,  for  its  social  and  political  importance. 

They  call  it  a  colony,  and  its  governor,  or  director,  is  the 
colonibestyrere,  which  is  to  say,  the  steerer  of  it.  There 
are  eleven  other  colonibestyreres  in  the  country,  one  for 
each  of  the  other  eleven  "Districts,"  which  extend  north- 
ward one  above  the  other  from  Julianashaab  to  tfre  very 


A  HOPEFUL   TOWN  IN  A  HOPELESS  PLACE.  29 

confines  of  the  habitable  globe.  The  northernmost  is 
Upernavik,  beyond  which  there  are  no  Christian  people,  or 
people  of  any  kind  living  on  the  earth,  except  a  few  skin- 
clad  savages.  And,  strange  enough,  this  most  northern 
place  of  Christian  occupation  bears  a  name  which  signifies 
"  the  summer  place,"  derived  from  Upernak,  or,  as  it 
might  be  better  spelt,  Oopernak,  the  native  Esquimaux 
word  for  summer. 

Julianashaab,  on  the  other  hand,  expresses  a  compliment 
to  royalty.  It  was  founded  nearly  a  hundred  years  ago, 
at  which  time  a  king  sat  on  the  Danish  throne  who  had 
a  queen  named  Juliana.  So,  in  honor  of  her  majesty,  they 
called  this  hopeful  place  the  hadb  of  Juliana,  which  is  to 
say,  in  English,  Julia's  Hope.  I  could  but  wonder  if  all  the 
expectations  that  the  name  bespeaks  were  ever  realized ;  for 
if  so,  the  founders  of  it  must  have  been  extremely  modest. 
I  was  especially  impressed  with  this  feeling  when  I  land- 
ed next  morning,  on  a  visit  to  the  governor's  house,  and 
was  greeted  there  by  the  principal  part  of  the  population. 

Not  a  soul  of  them  had,  I  believe,  ever  gone  to  bed  after 
our  arrival ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  had  remained  as  they 
began  —  gazing  at  the  Panther  all  the  morning.  When 
they  first  saw  signs  of  activity  on  board,  they  expressed 
their  delight  in  a  very  hilarious  fashion ;  calling  to  each 
other,  laughing,  and  running  about  from  place  to  place, 
singly  and  in  flocks,  in  a  manner  to  indicate  a  very  lively 
state  of  feeling.  The  little  huts  from  which  they  emerged 
were  scarcely  distinguishable  from  the  rocks  themselves, 
and  the  people  appeared  to  be  coming  out  of  the  earth, 
and  dropping  into  it  again  like  prairie-dogs.  Great  was 
the  rush  when  I  got  in  my  boat  and  started  for  the  land- 
ing-place. Here  they  formed  themselves  in  two  lines,  a 
hundred  or  more  of  them  —  men,  women,  and  children  — 
all  talking  or  laughing,  and  all  much  delighted.  Some 


30  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

pointed  with  their  fingers ;  others  remarked  the  singu- 
lar performances  of  my  tailor ;  others  said,  properly 
enough,  what  an  odd-looking  thing  a  round-topped  hat 
was  ;  and  they  all  stood  their  ground  while  I  marched  be- 
tween the  two  files,  not  one  of  them  willing  to  forego  for 
a  moment  the  gratification  of  the  passion  of  curiosity, 
which  it  is  pleasant  to  know  that  arctic  frosts  can  no  more 
destroy  than  civilization  unseat  from  its  prying  stool. 

To  see  yourself  gazed  at  by  so  many  persons,  even  al- 
though they  may  be  half-savage,  is  an  embarrassing  cir- 
cumstance ;  and  I  should  no  doubt  have  felt  bashful  about 
running  the  gauntlet  of  their  eyes  had  not  another  sense 
than  that  of  sight  claimed  its  legitimate  right  of  prece- 
dence, and  with  such  remarkable  energy,  too,  that  all  minor 
emotions  were  impossible.  Accordingly,  I  made  my  way 
through  the  crowd  without  any  delay  whatever,  and,  in 
fact,  with  a  speed  not  at  all  calculated  to  give  that  oppor- 
tunity for  close  examination  which  is  always  desirable  to 
a  traveller.  The  fact  is,  like  the  pilot  we  had  picked  up, 
they  smelt  fishy,  and,  had  I  not  been  most  positively  in- 
formed otherwise,  I  should  have  written  the  inhabitants  of 
Julianashaab  down  as  amphibious  creatures  of  a  fishy  na- 
ture. And  it  would  have  been  no  very  unnatural  mistake 
either — not  so  bad,  at  least,  as  Sir  John  Mandeville's  imag- 
ining boles  of  cotton  to  be  woolly  hens. 

To  explain  all  this,  it  is  needful  only  to  observe  that,  this 
Hope  of  Juliana  being  nothing  but  a  fishing-town,  the 
people  are  all  fishermen,  and  therefore  every  thing  smells 
of  fish  exceedingly.  The  odor  extended  everywhere  ;  the 
wharf  and  rocks  were  strewn  with  fish,  and  the  air  seemed 
charged  with  fish  that  had  evaporated.  I  became  in  a  lit- 
tle while  saturated  thoroughly  ;  so  much  so,  indeed,  that  I 
felt  myself  hardened  sufficiently  to  approach  and  examine 
the  people  more  carefully  than  I  had  done  at  first. 


A  HOPEFUL   TOWN  IN  A  HOPELESS  PLACE.  31 

They  proved  to  be  of  many  shades  of  color,  from  the 
tawny  hue  of  the  native  Esquimaux  (Greenlanders  they 
call  them  here),  to  the  almost  pure  Caucasian  complex- 
ion, with  transparent  skin  and  rosy  cheeks.  Of  this  latter 
class  was  one  girl  especially,  who  stood  apart  from  the  rest 
as  if  she  were  superior  to  them,  and  yet  could  not  wholly 
restrain  her  curiosity.  Her  hair,  which  was  auburn,  was 
very  abundant,  and  had  been  arranged  with  much  care. 
A  red  silk  handkerchief  was  tied  about  the  forehead,  and 
ribbons  without  stint  fluttered  from  the  knob  of  hair  which 
stood  up  on  the  crown  of  her  head.  The  labors  of  her  toi- 
let had  evidently  been  performed  with  the  greatest  nicety. 
Her  boots  were  as  red  as  her  handkerchief  and  quite  as 
spotless;  her  trowsers  were  of  the  choicest  and  most 
shining  sealskin,  neatly  ornamented  with  needle-work  and 
beads.  Then  her  jacket,  which  was  of  some  bright  color 
to  match,  looked  very  jaunty.  It  met  the  trowsers  at  the 
hips,  where  it  was  trimmed  with  a  broad  band  of  eider- 
down. About  the  neck  there  was  a  collar  of  the  same 
material,  and  the  beads  upon  the  breast  and  around  the 
wrists,  where  there  was  more  eider-down,  were  quite  daz- 
zling. 

Altogether  she  was  very  pretty.  Her  complexion  was 
a  dark  brunette,  but  very  delicate.  When  I  approached 
to  speak  to  her,  she  blushed  and  ran  away,  which  was  the 
only  fault  I  had  to  find  with  her.  The  little,  savage,  coy 
coquette  would  not  let  me  have  a  word  with  her,  but  got 
behind  a  house,  taking  good  care,  however,  to  show  her- 
self from  time  to  time  around  the  corner,  peeping  there, 
after  the  very  simple  and  artless  fashion  of  coquettes  the 
world  over.  She  was  not,  however,  allowed  to  remain 
there  undisturbed ;  for  following  after  me  came  a  young 
gentleman  from  the  Panther,  who  immediately  proceeded 
to  invest  the  house,  stealing  around  in  the  rear  of  it. 


o2  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

When  he  had  fairly  cornered  her  she  did  not  seem  at  all 
afraid,  but  spoke  to  him  civilly  enough ;  and  then  from 
that  time  forward,  whatever  might  be  my  disposition  to- 
wards a  better  acquaintance  with  this  lively  maiden  of 
Julianashaab,  my  chances  were  clearly  gone  forever ;  for 
afterwards  she  smiled  only  on  this  young  gentleman.  It 
is  said  (such  was  the  influence  of  his  engaging  manners 
and  the  delicacy  of  his  flattery)  that  she  gave  him  her  red 
boots  at  the  very  first  interview. 

This  young  gentleman  bore  among  his  shipmates  the 
name  of  Prince ;  but  whether  that  name  was  natural  to 
him,  or  whether  it  was,  as  some  asserted,  on  account  of  a 
fancied  resemblance  to  the  Prince  of  Wales,  or  whether 
on  account  of  his  being  the  prince  of  good-fellows  (which 
is  more  likely  than  all),  is  not  important.  B^t  Prince  he 
was,  and  like  a  prince  he  behaved.  Concordia  was  the 
name,  as  afterwards  appeared,  of  the  coy  damsel.  I  shall 
hereafter  have  occasion  to  relate  how  the  Prince  actually 
(as  was  said)  proposed  to  abandon  the  Panther  that  he 
might  make  Concordia  as  happy  a  little  princess  as  ever 
was  Cinderella. 

Proceeding  up  the  path  after  leaving  the  native  popu- 
lation, I  encountered  a  man  who  was  a  full-blooded  Dane 
in  appearance,.and  I  should  not  have  known  otherwise  had 
he  not  told  me  afterwards  that  his  mother  had  some  native 
blood  in  her  veins.  He  had  been  born  here  in  the  infant 
days  of  the  colony,  and  when  we  fell  into  conversation 
he  expatiated  upon  its  growth,  and  manifested  much  pride 
in  its  prosperity.  For  a  long  while  he  had  been  the  assist- 
ant bestyrere ;  but  now  he  steers  an  island  of  his  own,  some 
thirty  miles  away,  and  he  is  at  present  up  on  a  visit,  with 
his  family,  to  see  the  metropolitan  sights.  They  had  seen 
the  church,  the  parson,  the  governor  and  his  wonderful 
store-rooms,  and  now,  to  cap  the  climax,  here  had  unex- 


A  HOPEFUL   TOWN  LN  A  HOPELESS  PLACE.  33 

pectedly  come  an  OomeasoaJc  (big  boat)  that  could  breathe, 
and  had  feet  to  kick  through  the  water  with !  What  a 
journey  up  to  town  this  had  been,  to  be  sure  !  How  envi- 
ous this  would  make  their  fellow-villagers,  when  they  got 
home  and  told  of  all  the  wonders  they  had  seen ! 

The  name  of  this  man  was  Peter  Motzfeldt,  and  a  very 
field  of  moss  he  was,  if  a  ripe  and  fresh  old  age  can  be 
called  so.  Seventy  bleak  arctic  winters  had  passed  above 
his  head,  but  not  a  single  one  had  apparently  gone  into  his 
heart,  or  even  scattered  frost  upon  his  coal-black  hair.  He 
was  as  lively  and  elastic  as  if  he  were  but  twenty,  which 
was  the  time  when  he  first  took  service  with  the  Royal 
Greenland  Fishing  Company,  in  whose  employ  he  has  been 
ever  since.  He  had  never  been  to  Denmark,  and  he  did 
not  wish  to  go.  It  was  all  that  he  could  do  (naturally 
enough)  to  look  after  his  two-and-twenty  children,  two 
boat-loads  of  which  he  had  brought  up  with  him  to  town. 

This  was  the  fiftieth  anniversary  of  his  employment  by 
the  Company,  and  the  Company,  in  recognition  of  his 
faithfulness,  had  sent  him  a  present,  which  was  unfortu- 
nately, he  said,  down  at  Kraksimeut,  where  he  lived.  I 
thought  he  might  have  started  with  some  of  it  on  board 
the  boat,  and  was  the  further  confirmed  in  that  suspicion 
when  I  ascertained  that  the  present  was  an  importation 
from  Santa  Cruz,  and  that  there  was  no  such  token  of  civ- 
ilization anywhere  in  Julianashaab  as  a  public  bar-room. 

He  promised  to  call  upon  me  in  the  Panther,  and  devote 
himself  to  my  service  if  I  needed  him.  That  I  should  need 
him  was  most  evident,  for  he  was  perfectly  charged  with 
local  knowledge,  and  besides  that,  had  been  with  Captain 
Graah  in  the  exploration  which  the  Danish  Government 
had  ordered  of  this  region  in  1828-30.  His  name  was 
therefore  familiar  to  me  already,  from  Graah's  narrative. 
He  went  with  me  to  the  government-house,  and  there  left 

B2 


34  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

me  to  present  myself  before  Colonibestyrere  Kursch,  who 
I  was  glad  to  find  (as  I  have  usually  found  elsewhere  with 
educated  Danes)  spoke  English  fluently,  and,  gratified  with 
the  welcome,  I  felt  quite  at  home  immediately,  and  began 
already  to  entertain  a  high  opinion  of  Julianashaab.  If 
my  first  introduction  to  the  Land  of  Desolation  had  been 
somewhat  rough,  my  first  intercourse  with  its  people 
(barring  the  fishy  odor  which  they  carried  about  with 
them)  was  decidedly  pleasant. 

Mr.  Kursch  was  kind  enough  to  furnish  me  with  some 
charts  of  the  coast,  all  drawn  with  that  care  and  nicety  for 
which  the  Danish  hydrographers  are  famous.  Afterwards 
we  went  together  over  to  the  house  of  the  missionary,  who 
lived  at  the  opposite  end  of  the  town.  In  going  there,  we 
passed  two  store-houses,  the  Parliament-house  (even  here 
they  can  not  do  without  a  Parliament),  the  doctor's  house, 
numerous  turf-covered  huts  of  the  natives,  a  few  of  better 
construction,  where  some  half-breed  families  reside  (includ- 
ing the  catechist,  the  assistant  bestyrere,  the  blacksmith, 
and  the  carpenter) ;  then  we  crossed  a  narrow,  dashing 
stream  upon  a  bridge,  and  were  at  the  church  and  parsonage. 

The  church  is  quite  a  picturesque  little  building,  con- 
structed of  wood  (of  course  brought  from  Denmark),  as 
are  indeed  all  the  buildings  put  up  by  the  Government. 
The  walls  are  double,  and,  the  space  between  being  made 
quite  air-tight  by  calking,  the  interior  is  easily  warmed. 
Indeed  there  is  little  suffering  from  cold  at  any  time  of 
year  in  any  of  the  buildings  at  Julianashaab.  They  need 
no  fire  during  three  months  of  the  summer,  and  for  the 
winter  the  home  government  sends  them  out  a  liberal 
supply  of  coal.  As  a  further  protection,  the  houses  (which 
are  but  one  story  high)  are  all  plastered  over  on  the  out- 
side with  pitch,  which  closes  tightly  every  crack  and  cran- 
ny, and  protects  them  from  the  weather. 


A  HOPEFUL  TOWN  IN  A  HOPELESS  PLACK  35 

If  the  church  had  not  been  black,  it  would  have  been  in 
all  respects  neat  and  tidy.  Black  though  it  was,  it  was  a 
pleasant  sight  to  see  this  house  of  God  here  in  the  desert, 
and  by  its  very  appearance  giving  proof  unmistakable  of 
good,  earnest,  Christian  work.  "  Cleanliness  before  godli- 
ness," was  meant  for  men,  but  it  will  do  for  a  church  as 
well. 

The  same  neatness  was  observable  at  the  pastor's  house. 
The  little  building  was  surrounded  with  a  yard  and  gar- 
den, which  was  inclosed  with  a  white  fence ;  and  in  every 
window  of  the  house  plants  were  growing  in  brightly- 
painted  pots,  filling  the  rooms  with  their  delicious  per- 
fume. 

In  the  pastor  I  met  with  a  great  surprise.  I  had  seen 
him  before  in  1860-61  at  Upernavik,  away  up  among  the 
polar  frosts,  almost  a  thousand  miles  beyond  his  present 
residence.  It  seemed  as  if  he  could  not  quit  Greenland  ; 
as  if  his  heart  and  soul  were  in  his  missionary  work,  and 
he  would  not  give  it  up.  He  had  been  compelled  to  ask 
for  change  of  residence,  for  the  Upernavik  winters  had 
been  too  much  for  him.  I  had  scarcely  crossed  the  thresh- 
old, when  I  distinguished  a  pleasant  smile  and  gentle 
voice  that  had  welcomed  me  before.  "  Can  this  be  Mr. 
Anthon?"  I  asked. 

"  Yes ;"  and  the  good  pastor  opened  wide  his  eyes, 
greatly  astonished  to  see  me  there ;  but,  recovering  him- 
self presently,  he  addressed  me  by  name,  and  then  called  his 
wife  and  sister,  and  I  could  almost  think  myself  back  again 
in  the  same  neat  parsonage  where  I  had  first  met  this  in- 
teresting family  years  before.  A  lovely  girl  and  a  bright- 
eyed  boy  had  been  added  to  the  group  since  then;  but 
now,  as  then,  there  was  soon  a  bottle  of  wine  upon  the  ta- 
ble, fragrant  coffee  in  the  urn,  some  Danish  fare  soon  fol- 
lowed;  and  there  was  plenty  of  Danish  heartiness  all 


36  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

round.  In  the  afternoon  we  strolled  up  the  bank  of  a  lit- 
tle stream  that  runs  beside  the  church  and  parsonage,  and 
came  upon  a  broad  valley,  in  the  centre  of  which  there  is 
a  lake.  Around  the  lake  there  were  extensive  pasture- 
grounds,  upon  which  were  browsing  a  herd  of  cows  and  a 
flock  of  goats.  At  this  I  was  not  a  little  surprised,  for  al- 
though I  knew  that  in  former  times  cattle  had  been  reared 
here  in  great  numbers,  I  had  received  the  impression  that 
at  the  present  time  they  would  not  thrive.  Mr.  Anthon 
informed  me  that  there  was  no  difficulty  in  raising  them, 
except  the  very  important  one  of  forage  for  the  winter, 
for  at  Julianashaab  the  grass  never  grows  high  enough  for 
hay.  Farther  up  the  fiord,  however,  it  is  abundant ;  but 
since  the  hay  must  all  be  brought  in  boats,  it  was  both  a 
tedious  and  expensive  operation  to  gather  it.  Yet  he 
managed  to  keep  three  cows ;  the  governor  had  an  equal 
number ;  the  doctor  had  two ;  others  had  each  one ;  and, 
indeed,  all  the  well-to-do  people  in  the  village — Danes, 
half-breeds,  and  the  better  class  of  Greenlanders — had  a 
daily  supply  of  milk  the  year  round. 

The  lake  abounds  in  trout,  a  few  of  which  were  caught, 
and,  when  we  returned  for  dinner,  Mrs.  Anthon  had  them 
for  us  on  the  table.  She  had,  besides,  some  Greenland 
beef,  and  Greenland  milk  and  butter ;  some  smoked  Green- 
land salmon  too,  and  some  Greenland  venison;  also  some 
radishes  and  lettuce  from  her  garden:  and  now,  when 
these  were,  after  a  while,  comfortably  settled  in  their 
proper  places  with  a  glass  of  good  old  Santa  Cruz  punch, 
and  an  old  Dutch  pipe  was  brought  to  keep  it  company, 
and  the  governor  and  his  assistant,  and  the  doctor  and 
Motzfeldt  had  come  in  to  join  us,  we  fell  into  a  lively  talk 
of  Greenland  and  its  legends ;  and  it  was  not  until  a  new 
day  was  breaking  above  the  solemn  hills  around  that  I 
found  my  way  back  to  the  Panther.  For  fear,  however, 


A  HOPEFUL  TOWN  IN  A  HOPELESS  PLACE.  37 

the  reader  should  think  we  "  made  a  night  of  it "  at  the 
parsonage,  I  will  remind  him  that  the  "break  of  day" 
there,  in  the  early  part  of  July,  is  about  two  o'clock. 

I  have  rarely  passed  a  more  pleasant  evening  or  one 
more  profitable.  Our  conversation  ran  mostly  upon 
events  of  the  past  rather  than  of  the  present ;  for  Julian- 
ashaab,  although  not  without  interest  in  itself,  is  doubly  in- 
teresting from  its  locality.  It  stands  on  historic  ground." 
Here  was  the  spot  that  we  were  seeking  when  the  Pan- 
ther drove  in  among  the  "  hills  and  fields  of  ice "  upon 
the  Land  of  Desolation ;  a  spot  which  history  had  made 
famous,  and  legend  and  tradition  had  been  busy  with; 
where  brave  old  Eric  the  Red  had  come  nearly  nine  cen- 
turies ago,  and,  with  his  followers,  founded  a  sort  of  inde- 
pendent state. 

The  fiord  on  the  banks  of  which  stands  this  modern 
town  of  Julianashaab  extends  some  forty  miles  beyond; 
but,  while  the  modern  town  stands  alone,  in  ancient  days 
hamlets  were  dotted  beside  it  everywhere ;  thousands  of 
cattle  once  browsed  where  there  are  now  but  a  few  cows ; 
and  peace  and  plenty  reigned  here  once  among  a  Chris- 
tian people,  who,  after  maintaining  themselves  through 
nearly  five  hundred  years,  undisturbed  by  the  elements  of 
discord  that  afflicted  the  world  elsewhere,  became  at 
length  extinct,  and,  while  they  passed  away,  left  only  a 
few  meagre  records  of  their  growth  and  progress,  and 
ruins  of  their  decay.  These  ruins,  I  had  learned,  were 
still  to  be  seen  at  many  points  of  the  fiord,  the  walls  of 
some  of  the  buildings  being,  even  at  this  late  period,  in  a 
tolerable  state  of  preservation. 

To  visit  these  ruins  was,  in  fact,  our  principal  object  in 
putting  into  Julianashaab.  Around  them,  indeed,  centred 
the  principal  interest  of  the  voyage — at  least,  so  far  as 
concerned  myself;  and  I  did  not  quit,  therefore,  the  house 


38  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

of  the  good  pastor  until  we  had  planned  an  expedition  to 
the  place  where  the  founder  of  this  ancient  people  dwelt, 
and  the  church  wherein  he  worshipped,  in  those  latter  days 
of  his  life  when  he  had  abandoned  his  war-god,  Odin,  for 
the  Prince  of  Peace. 

I  had  hoped  Peter  Motzfeldt  would  offer  to  accompany 
us,  as  he  had  visited  some  of  the  ruins  forty  years  before 
with  Captain  Graah ;  but  other  engagements  preventing 
him,  Mr.  Anthon  was  good  enough  to  undertake  to  be 
our  guide. 


ERIC  THE  RED. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ERIC    THE    RED. 

THE  fiord  on  the  border  of  which  stands  the  colony  of 
Julianashaab  is  now  known  as  the  fiord  of  Igalliko,  mean- 
ing, "  the  fiord  of  the  deserted  homes  :"  the  deserted  homes 
being  the  desolate  and  long-abandoned  ruins  of  the  Norse 
buildings  which  are  scattered  along  its  picturesque  banks. 

Its  ancient  name  was  Ericsfiord,  so  named  by  Red  Eric, 
in  commemoration  of  his  discovery,  and  for  the  perpetua- 
tion of  his  fame  —  a  sad  commentary,  truly,  upon  the  in- 
stability of  human  designs,  that  a  name  meant  to  recall 
the  memory  of  a  great  achievement  should  be  replaced 
by  one  expressive  of  decay  and  ruin. 

This  fiord  is  a  grand  inlet  from  the  sea,  and  is  from 
two  to  five  miles  wide.  To  all  appearances,  it  is  a  great 
river,  flowing  along  majestically  between  its  banks.  It 
does  not,  however,  stand  alone,  for  there  are  many  others 
in  Greenland  that  much  resemble  it.  It  is  one  of  a  multi- 
tude of  similar  inlets  that  give  such  peculiar  character  to 
the  Greenland  coast.  In  fact,  there  is  no  other  coast  like 
it,  if  we  except  that  of  Norway.  But,  unlike  the  fiords 
of  Norway,  glaciers  descend  into  nearly  all  of  them. 
These  glaciers,  by  their  steady  growth,  have  changed  the 
aspect  of  the  country  greatly  since  the  Northmen  first 
went  there  and  gave  it  the  name  which  it  at  present 
bears.  That  it  is  a  misnomer,  need  hardly  be  mentioned, 
though  the  application  of  it  came  about  in  a  very  simple 
way.  Davis' s  "Land  of  Desolation"  suits  the  country 
much  better  than  Eric's  "  Greenland." 


40  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

The  name  Ericsfiord,  like  that  of  Magellan's  Strait, 
Hispaniola,  etc.,  commemorates  a  discovery.  Perhaps  I 
should  rather  say,  like  that  of  America,  it  commemorates 
a  re-discovery ;  for  as  America  was  known  long  before 
Columbus's  time,  so  also  was  Greenland  before  Eric's,  if 
we  are  to  credit  (and  we  have  no  reason  to  doubt  them) 
the  ancient  sagas  of  Iceland.  According  to  these,  one 
Gunnibiorn  landed  in  Greenland  in  the  year  872. 

Eric  was  a  high-spirited  son  of  a  jarl  of  Jadar,  in  Nor- 
way, who,  opposing  the  encroachments  of  the  king  upon  his 
feudal  rights,  in  common  with  his  class,  was  forced  to  flee 
the  country.  Escaping  with  his  son,  he  established  him- 
self in  Iceland,  which  was  then  being  peopled  by  such  ref- 
ugees from  tyranny  and  wrong,  and  a  society  was  being 
formed  which,  for  love  of  liberty  and  the  actual  possession 
of  republican  freedom,  has  never  been  excelled.  These  Ice- 
landers were  then,  and  they  continued  to  be  for  centuries 
afterwards,  the  most  intellectual  and  refined  people  of  the 
north  of  Europe ;  and  this  is  not  surprising  when  it  is 
remembered  that  the  best  blood  of  Norway  and  Denmark 
went  to  swell  its  population.  In  fact,  Iceland  gave  litera- 
ture and  laws  to  the  whole  of  Scandinavia.  The  child  was 
wiser  than  the  parent.  Her  writers  first  put  in  shape  the 
Norse  mythology;  and  many  of  the  most  distinguished 
families  of  Norway  and  Denmark  are  now  proud  to  trace 
their  origin  back  to  the  old  freedom-loving  jarls  and  sea- 
kings  who  founded  a  nation  upon  a  rock  which  had  been 
forced  up  by  terrestrial  fires  into  an  atmosphere  so  cold 
and  forbidding  that  the  snows  gathered  upon  its  lofty  sum- 
mits, while  volcanic  heat  wrestled  in  the  bowels  of  its 
mountains. 

Eric  received  his  surname  of  Red,  or  Rothe,  from  the 
color  of  his  hair;  and  his  corresponding  disposition 
doubled  the  significance  of  the  name  when  it  was  made  to 


ERIV  THE  MEL,  ±\ 

signify  "  he  of  the  red  hand,"  as  well  as  of  the  red  head. 
The  truth  is,  he  was,  according  to  all  accounts,  much 
addicted  to  the  then  popular  pastime  of  cutting  people's 
throats ;  and  for  his  last  offense  of  this  description  he  was 
banished  from  Iceland  for  a  space  of  three  years.  The 
immediate  offense  was  for  killing  a  churlish  knave  who 
would  not  return  a  borrowed  door-post,  which  was  always 
a  sacred  object,  and  was  preserved  with  pious  care  by  the 
Scandinavians.  Perhaps  if  the  borrowed  article  had  been 
a  book  instead  of  a  door-post,  as  in  the  case  of  fighting  St. 
Colomba,  the  decree  might  have  been  different. 

Being  banished,  where  should  Eric  go  ?  He  could  not 
return  to  Norway,  and  there  was  no  place  where  he  could 
set  his  foot  with  any  safety.  So  he  bethought  him  of  the 
legendary  land  of  Gunnibiorn,  for,  according  to  the  Iceland 
Landnama,  or  Doomsday-book  of  Are  the  Wise,  that  was 
the  name  of  the  man  who  had  visited  the  land  to  the  west 
of  Iceland.  This  land  Eric  would  go  in  search  of,  and  risk 
his  life  and  every  thing  upon  the  hazard. 

He  set  sail  from  Bredifiord,  in  Iceland,  some  time  during 
the  summer  of  the  year  983,  in  a  small  half-decked  ship,  and 
in  three  days  he  sighted  land.  Not  altogether  liking  the 
looks  of  it,  he  coasted  southward  until  he  came  to  a  turn- 
ing-place, or  Hvarf,  now  called  Cape  Farewell.  Thence 
he  made  his  way  northward  to  the  present  site  of  Julianas- 
haab,  where  he  passed  the  three  years  of  his  forced  exile. 
He  liked  the  country  well,  as  much  as  he  had  disliked  it 
before  when  he  saw  it  from  the  other  side.  Upon  the 
meadow-lands  beside  the  fiord  immense  herds  of  reindeer 
were  browsing  on  the  luxurious  grass;  sparrows  chir- 
ruped among  the  branches  of  the  little  trees.  He  thought 
the  place  would  do  to  settle  in,  and  named  it  Greenland. 

But  to  be  precise,  as  it  is  always  well  to  be,  I  quote 
from  an  old  Norse  saga  of  the  before-mentioned  Are  the 


42  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Wise — a  saga  written  in  Iceland  about  the  year  1100,  the 
original  of  which  was  in  existence  up  to  1651,  and  a  copy 
of  which  is  still  preserved  in  Copenhagen.  Thus  runs  the 
tale: 

"The  land  which  is  called  Greenland  was  discovered 
and  settled  from  Iceland.  Eric  the  Red  was  the  man 
from  Bredifiord  who  passed  thither  from  hence  [Iceland] 
and  took  possession  of  that  portion  of  the  country  now 
called  Ericsfiord.  But  the  name  he  gave  the  whole  coun- 
try was  Greenland.  'For,'  quoth  he,  {if  the  land  have  a 
good  name,  it  will  cause  many  to  come  hither.'  He  first 
colonized  the  land  fourteen  or  fifteen  winters  before  Chris- 
tianity was  introduced  into  Iceland,  as  was  told  by  Thor- 
kil  Gelluson  in  Greenland,  by  one  who  had  himself  accom- 
panied Eric  thither."  This  Thorkil  Gelluson  was  uncle  to 
Are  the  Wise,  and  the  historian  was  pretty  likely,  there- 
fore, to  be  accurate  in  his  information. 

Upon  returning  to  Iceland,  Eric  was  graciously  re- 
ceived ;  and  what  with  the  fine  name  he  had  given  to  his 
new  country,  and  the  fine  promises  he  held  out,  he  had  no 
trouble  in  obtaining  all  he  asked  for — that  is,  twenty-five 
ships  loaded  with  adventurous  people,  and  all  the  appli- 
ances for  building  up  a  colony.  Thus  provided,  he  set  sail 
in  the  year  985  ;  but  only  fourteen  of  these  ships  ever 
reached  their  destination.  Some  of  the  remaining  eleven 
were  lost  at  sea;  others  were  wrecked  upon  the  east- 
ern coast  of  Greenland ;  others  put  back  to  Iceland  in  dis- 
tress. 

Eric  was  resolved  to  found  a  nation  for  himself,  and 
these  fourteen  cargoes  of  people  gave  him  a  sufficient  nu- 
cleus. He  went  far  up  his  fiord  and  began  a  settlement. 
A  house  was  also  built  nearer  to  the  sea — probably  a  look- 
out-house ;  for  Eric  expected  other  ships,  and  he,  like  a 
prudent  man  that  he  was,  would  set  a  watch  for  them. 


ERIC  THE  RED.  43 

The  ruins  of  this  house  may  still  be  seen,  and  are  not  five 
minutes'  walk  from  the  pastor's  house  at  Julianashaab. 

According  to  his  expectations,  other  ships  arrived,  bringv 
ing  cattle,  sheep,  and  horses ;  likewise  his  wife,  and  sons 
and  daughters.  The  settlement  grew  and  prospered.  Nor- 
wegians, Danes,  Icelanders,  people  from  the  Hebrides,  from 
the  British  Isles,  from  Ireland,  and  even  from  the  south  of 
Europe,  came  there  in  ships  to  trade.  Emigrants  poured 
in,  new  towns  were  built,  new  farms  were  cleared,  and  am- 
bitious and  adventurous  men  searched  up  and  down  the 
coast  for  other  fields  whereon  to  display  their  enterprise. 
How  far  north  the  most  adventurous  went  we  can  not 
certainly  know ;  but  Rafn  places  one  of  their  expeditions 
in  latitude  75°,  a  point  to  which  the  stoutest  ships  of  mod- 
ern times  can  not  now  go  without  encountering  serious 
risk.  And  all  this  was  ventured,  eight  hundred  years  ago, 
in  half-decked  ships  and  open  boats.  It  is  positively 
known  that  one  of  their  expeditions  reached  as  far  as 
Upernavik,  latitude  72°  50',  a  stone  having  been  discov- 
ered near  there,  in  1824,  by  Sir  Edward  Parry,  bearing  the 
following  inscription  in  Runic  characters : 

"Erling  Sighvatson  and  Biorn  Thordarson  and 
Eindrid  Oddson  on  Saturday  before  As- 
cension week  raised  these  marks 
and  cleared  ground.     1135." 

Think  of  "clearing  ground"  in  Greenland  up  in  latitude 
72°  50' !  What  kind  of  ground  would  now  be  found  to 
clear  ?  Naked  wastes  alone ;  and  the  desert  sands  are  not 
more  unproductive.  But,  as  intimated  already,  the  climate 
has  certainly  changed  during  the  seven  hundred  years 
since  this  event  happened ;  in  evidence  of  which,  it  is  not 
unimportant  to  observe  that,  in  the  old  chronicles  of  the 
voyages  of  those  ancient  Northmen,  there  is  very  little 


44  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

mention  made  of  ice  as  a  disturbing  element  in  navigation. 
And  this  brings  us  back  to  where  we  started — to  the 
growth  of  glaciers  in  the  Greenland  fiords.  From  these 
glaciers  come  "the  icebergs,  and  a  fiord  which  receives  a 
glacier  is  not  habitable. 

There  was  no  glacier  in  Ericsfiord  when  Eric  went 
there,  and  there  are  none  now,  but  it  is  surrounded  by 
them.  The  mountains  are  of  such  peculiar  formation  that 
they  keep  back  the  frozen  flood  from  Ericsfiord  itself;  and 
thus  it  was  that  this  spot  of  earth  was  and  still  is  fit  for 
human  life — an  oasis  in  a  desert,  a  patch  of  green  in  a  wil- 
derness of  ice.  But  to  this  subject  we  shall  have  occasion 
to  refer  hereafter  more  at  length. 


THE  ARCTIC  SIX."  45 


CHAPTER  V. 

"THE  ARCTIC   SIX." 

EEIC  named  his  first  settlement  Brattahlid.  The  next 
he  called  Gardar ;  another,  the  Norse  name  of  which  has 
been  lost,  now  bears  the  Esquimaux  name  of  Krakortok, 
which  means,  "  the  place  of  the  white  rocks."  The  rocks 
are  of  the  same  metamorphic  character  as  elsewhere  in 
that  neighborhood,  and  only  differ  from  them  in  having, 
by  one  of  Nature's  freaks,  been  made  of  lighter  hue  than 
those  of  the  region  round  about. 

The  fiord  forks  a  short  distance  above  Julianashaab,  the 
southern  branch  leading  to  Brattahlid  and  Gardar,  the 
northern,  to  Krakortok,  which  place  it  was  our  design  to 
visit  first. 

Mr.  Anthon  not  only  offered  to  be  our  pilot,  as  before 
stated,  but  he  likewise  offered  us  his  Greenland  boat.  We 
had  boats  of  our  own,  and  good  ones  too ;  but  then  what 
so  appropriate  for  a  Greenland  fiord  as  a  Greenland  boat  ? 
So,  at  least,  said  our  pastor-pilot,  and  so  we  were  all  will- 
ing to  confess.  But  what  was  a  Greenland  boat  ? 

A  Greenland  boat  is  a  curiosity  in  marine  architecture. 
Mr.  Anthon  took  us  down  to  look  at  the  one  he  had  offered 
us.  It  was  turned  bottom  up  on  a  scaffolding,  so  that  we 
could  stand  under  it  and  almost  see  through  it,  for  it  was 
semi-transparent  like  a  bladder.  When  I  thumped  it  with 
a  stick,  it  rattled  like  a  drum. 

"There  it  is,"  said  the  pastor;  "how  do  you  like  the 
looks  of  it?" 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


THE    OO-UiAK   AM)    OKEVV. 


"  What !  that  thing  ?"  exclaimed  the  captain,  with  ill- 
concealed  contempt ;  "  go  to  sea  in  a  thing  like  that  ?" 

"  Certainly,"  said  the  pastor ;  "  why  not  ?" 

Then  he  called  three  or  four  people,  who  had  it  off  the 
scaffolding  in  a  twinkling  and  down  into  the  water,  where 
it  floated  like  a  balloon  that  had  been  set  adrift  by  mis- 
take upon  the  sea. 

"  It's  a  woman's  boat,"  explained  the  pastor. 

"  Oh  yes,  I  see,"  answered  the  professor ;  "  made  by 
women.  Quite  an  interesting  object." 

It  was  certainly  made  with  great  cunning.  It  was 
about  thirty-six  feet  long,  by  six  feet  wide,  and  two  and  a 
half  deep.  There  was  not  a  peg,  or  nail,  or  screw  in  it,  so 
far  as  we  could  see;  and, judging  by  the  same  method  of 
inspection,  it  was  all  leather. 

The  pastor  asked  again  how  we  liked  the  looks  of  it, 
now  that  it  was  in  the  water. 

To  confess  the  truth,  it  looked  a  little  too  balloonish  to 
suit  any  body's  fancy.  The  captain  broke  into  a  laugh. 


"  THE  ARCTIC  SIX."  47 

The  professor  speculated  upon  the  quantity  of  stones  that 
would  be  required  to  ballast  it,  measured  by  the  ton ;  our 
sagaman  began  to  institute  comparisons  between  it  and 
the  ancient  Phoenician  craft,  contending  that  the  latter 
possessed  decided  advantages  in  a  sea-way,  which  nobody 
doubted  for  a  moment.  The  photographers  came  running 
along  after  it  with  their  camera;  the  artists  ran  after  it 
with  their  pencils — particularly  a  young  gentleman  much 
given  to  caricature  (who,  for  short,  bore  the  euphonious 
name  of  Blob),  and  who  in  a  twinkling  sketched  her 
launched  from  an  iceberg  into  an  atmosphere  of  green 
above  a  golden  sea,  sailing  away  like  a  kite,  with  our  trader 
for  a  bok  The  trader  was  not  there  at  first,  but  he  came  up 
in  time  to  make  a  liberal  offer  of  pork  and  beans,  or  a  note 
of  hand,  in  exchange  for  it — any  thing  of  that  description 
would  be  so  handy  to  have  on  board  the  Panther — a  boat 
thirty-six  feet  long — handy  as  the  door-plate  in  the  Toodles 
house. 

Some  one  asked  Mr.  Anthon  if  he  would  not  be  good 
enough  "  to  have  the  thing  shoved  off,  that  we  might  get 
a  touch  of  its  quality." 

"  Of  course — by  all  means,"  replied  the  pastor.  Then 
he  called  the  crew  together. 

"  Now,  shades  of  Harvard  and  Oxford  defend  us,  what 
a  crew  !  and  what  a  rig  !"  exclaimed  the  Prince,  breaking 
into  a  laugh  as  the  crew  appeared. 

And  he  was  quite  right.  It  was  a  strange  rig  for  a 
boat's  crew,  without  any  sort  of  doubt.  Very  long  boots 
that  reached  above  the  knees,  of  divers  colors  and  pretty 
shape,  gave  a  trim  and  natty  look  to  the  pedal  extremi- 
ties. Then  they  wore  seal-skin  pantaloons,  very  short,  be- 
ginning where  the  boots  left  off  and  ending  midway  on 
the  hips,  where  they  met  a  jacket  bright  of  hue,  and  lined 
with  fawn -skin.  This  jacket  was  trimmed  around  the 


43  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

neck  with  black  fur,  beneath  which  peeped  up  a  white 
covering  to  the  throat.  The  hair  was  drawn  out  of  the 
way,  and  tied  with  red  ribbon  on  the  top  of  the  head  ;  and 
altogether  the  costume  was  calculated  to  show  off  the 
respective  figures  of  the  crew  to  the  greatest  possible 
advantage. 

Then  the  Prince  laughed  again  when  the  pastor  called 
their  names.  "  They're  a  jolly  lot,"  said  he. 

"Go  along,"  said  Mr.  An thon;  "go  along,  Maria,  and  take 
the  others  with  you." 

Maria  proved  to  be  stroke-oar,  and  she  called,  "  Cathe- 
rina,  Christina,  Dorothea,  Nicholina,  Concordia,  here,  come 
along." 

And  off  they  all  ran,  chattering  and  giggling  at  an 
amazing  rate ;  and  they  tumbled  into  the  boat  in  a  man- 
ner that  made  the  captain  fairly  frown  to  see  such  lack  of 
discipline.  We  were  all  much  amused  to  see  the  gay  and 
lively  manner  in  which  they  skipped  over  the  thwarts  to 
their  respective  places,  brimful  of  fun  and  mischief,  and 
altogether  making  quite  a  shocking  exhibition  for  a  boat's 
crew,  whose  duties  we  are,  usually  in  the  habit  of  seeing 
performed  in  a  very  sober  manner.  But  they  quieted  down 
a  little  when  a  more  sedate  individual  (who  proved  to  be 
the  coxswain) — dressed  in  short  boots  and  long  seal-skin 
pantaloons,  and  a  cap  instead  of  ribbons  on  the  head — 
came  along,  and,  taking  the  steering-oar,  gave  the  order  to 
"  shove  off." 

The  order  was  executed  in  handsome  style,  and  the  boat 
shot  out  over  the  little  harbor  very  swiftly,  each  of  the 
crew  rising  with  the  stroke  of  the  oar ;  and  bending  to 
their  work  with  a  will,  this  singular- looking  crew  made 
their  boat  fairly  hum  again. 

"  Fine  oarsmen !"  exclaimed  somebody  who  had  just 
come  up,  and  had  not  heard  the  roster  called. 


"THE  ARCTIC  SIX."  49 

"Oarsram/"  replied  the  pastor,  laughing  at  somebody's 
exceeding  innocence.  "  Oarsmen  !  why,  dear  me,  they  are 
o&TSwomenf" 

"Oars  what?" 

"  Oarswomen,  to  be  sure." 

"  Oarswomenf  Man  alive  !  and  do  they  always  pull  the 
boat?" 

"  Always,"  replied  the  pastor ;  "  always.  A  man  will 
never  pull  an  oar  in  a  woman's  boat.  He  would  think  it  a 
humiliation  and  disgrace.  The  most  he  will  do  is  to  take 
the  steering-oar,  which  is,  indeed,  quite  legitimate  busi- 
ness for  him.  He  has  his  own  small  boat,  the  handling 
of  which  requires  skill,  while  the  woman's  boat  requires 
none.  A  man  steers  the  boat  now ;  the  other  six,  who 
pull  the  oars,  are  all  of  the  other  sex,  and  I  could  not  wish 
for  a  better  crew." 

Upon  being  asked  what  duties  as  a  crew  they  usually 
performed,  he  answered : 

"They  row  me  about  from  place  to  place,  as  my  pas- 
toral duties  call  me ;  they  gather  hay  for  the  cows,  and 
bring  home  the  fish  (principally  capelin  and  cod)  that  the 
fishermen  catch  and  dry  at  distant  places.  Besides  this, 
they  do  any  thing  they  are  told  to  do,  and  do  not  hesitate 
to  expose  themselves  in  any  weather,  unless  it  should 
blow  too  hard  for  the  safety  of  the  boat." 

"  Has  such  a  boat  any  particular  name  ?"  the  captain 
asked. 

"  We  call  it  an  oomiak,  which  signifies,  simply,  a  wom- 
an's boat;  while  the  man's  boat  is  called  a  kayak" 

Here  the  Prince,  who  was  growing  somewhat  impatient 
over  this  long  catechizing,  broke  in  with  a  query  as  to 
whether  they  pulled  the  oomiak  to-morrow,  in  case  we 
should  conclude  to  go  in  her  ? 

"  Certainly,"  replied  the  pastor. 

C 


50  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

"  Just  that  same  precious  crew  ?" 

"The  same  crew  exactly." 

"  Including  the  bow-oar  you  call  Concordia  ?" 

"  Including  her,  of  course.  She  is  the  life  of  the  crew, 
and  I  could  never  get  along  without  Concordia." 

"Nor  I,"  replied  the  Prince.  "The  boat  will  do  for 
me.  Sink  or  swim,  survive  or  perish,  I  ship  in  that  craft 
for  one.  Pipe  the  dear  creatures  back." 

So  the  pastor  called  to  them  to  return,  which  they  did 
in  splendid  style ;  and,  every  body  agreeing  with  the 
Prince,  it  was  forthwith  arranged  that  we  should  go  in 
the  oomiak  upon  the  morrow. 

As  the  boat  came  in,  the  Prince  proffered  assistance,  in 
a  very  gallant  manner,  to  the  bow-oar,  but  the  girl  hur- 
ried from  the  gunwale  and  ran,  laughing,  away.  Nothing 
daunted,  however,  he  gave  chase;  but,  fleet  as  a  young 
deer,  she  outstripped  him  and  disappeared  in  the  village, 
where  the  Prince  was  observed  afterwards  to  be  wander- 
ing around  looking  for  her  disconsolately. 


UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK.  51 


CHAPTER  VI. 

UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK. 

THE  morning  came  fresh  and  sparkling  as  the  eyes  of 
our  fair  oarswomen,  who,  singing  to  the  music  of  their 
splashing  oars,  came  stealing  over  the  still  waters,  bearing 
the  good  pastor  in  his  arctic  gondola,  while  we  were  yet 
at  breakfast. 

Their  arrival  alongside  made  a  sensation.  Such  a  boat, 
propelled  in  such  a  fashion,  was  a  sight  new  to  sailors' 
eyes ;  and  it  did  not  seem  easy  for  our  people  to  reconcile 
such  uses  and  occupations  for  womankind  with  a  sailor's 
ideas  of  gallantry ;  for  a  sailor  is  always  quite  willing  for 
a  woman  to  be  a  princess,  and  as  such  he  would  always 
like  to  look  upon  her,  but  he  would  never  want  her  for  a 
cook.  He  could  never  be  happy  unless  he  could  abuse 
the  cook,  and  he  never  would  abuse  a  woman.  But  as  for 
pulling  at  an  oar,  why,  what  in  the  world  should  he  ever 
do,  if  he  were  not  allowed  to  express  his  preferences  as  to 
what  might  happen  to  the  eyes  of  any  one  who  disturbed 
the  stroke  ?  and  he  never  would  condemn  a  woman's  eyes. 
Clearly,  a  woman  would  not  do  to  pull  an  oar.  But  they 
were  good  to  have  a  little  pleasantry  with,  even  if  they 
did  not  understand  a  word  that  was  said  to  them. 

The  people  all  crowded  their  heads  over  the  bulwarks 
when  the  strange  boat  came  up,  and  Welch  addressed 
himself  thus  to  the  stroke-oar,  when  he  had  made  out  her 
peculiar  style  of  costume :  "  Ah  !  my  beauty,  from  the  cut 
of  your  rig,  it's  a  blood-relation  of  Brian  O'Lin's  that  you 
are ;"  which  created  a  good  laugh  at  the  girl's  expense, 


53  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

without  her,  however,  being  at  all  aware  of  the  cause  of  it. 
Not  getting  any  response  from  that  quarter,  he  turned  his 
attention  to  the  bow-oar.  "  And  my  bow-oar,  honey,  with 
the  red  topknot :  ah !  sure  and  she's  a  beauty.  Say,  my 
darlin,  you're  the  one  I'd  like  to  be  shipmates  with  till  the 
boat  sinks." 

The  bow-oar,  more  compliant  than  the  stroke,  nodded, 
smiled  graciously,  and  said,  "  Ab  !"  and  a  great  deal  more 
which  Welch  did  not  understand. 

"  Ab  ?"  he  repeated,  inquiringly ;  "  and  a  pity  it  is  that  a 
foreigner  you  are,  for  I'd  like  to  have  a  bit  of  a  chat  with 
you." 

Somebody  told  Welch  that  ab  meant  yes. 

"  And  you'll  be  shipmates  with  me  ?"  inquired  the  sailor, 
with  eagerness. 

The  bow-oar  said  "  Ab  !"  again. 

"  Ah,  then,  and  it's  too  willin'  ye  are,  honey,  entirely ; 
and  I'll  not  ship  with  you  at  all,  at  all.  But  you're  a  well- 
rigged  craft  alow  and  aloft,  for  all  that,  and  I'd  like  to 
have  the  overhaulin'  of  you." 

"  You'll  get  overhauled  yourself,  and  your  hull  scuttled, 
and  your  top-gallant  rigging  scattered  over  the  sea,  if  you 
tackle  that  craft  again,"  was  the  sharp  reply  which  the 
fireman  received  to  this  very  lively  address.  But  it  did 
not  come  from  the  bow-oar.  It  was  from  the  Prince,  who 
had  just  got  out  of  bed,  and,  without  pausing  to  comb  his 
hair,  had  rushed  to  the  gangway,  to  behold  in  the  bow- 
oar  the  fair  Concordia,  and  to  discover  that  a  sailor  was 
making  advances  to  her.  The  Prince  was  quite  indignant. 
He  soon,  however,  had  Concordia  on  deck,  when  the  oth- 
ers followed,  and  then,  conducting  them  all  to  the  galley, 
the  Prince  fed  them  bountifully.  Meanwhile,  preparation 
was  being  made  for  the  journey.  Some  of  us,  however, 
embraced  the  opportunity  to  examine  with  more  care  than 


UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK.  53 

we  had  been  able  to  before  the  strange-looking  boat  in 
which  it  was  proposed  to  perform  the  journey. 

We  go  down  into  it  before  the  cargo  is  stowed,  and  Mr. 
Anthon  explains  to  us  the  method  of  its  construction.  It 
is  not  at  all  likely  that  the  reader  of  this  book  will  ever 
desire  or  have  occasion  to  make  such  a  boat  for  his  own 
use ;  but  it  may  perhaps  not  be  uninteresting  to  him  to 
know  how  he  might  proceed,  if  he  should  so  desire.  Ac- 
cording to  the  pastor,  it  would  be  something  after  this 
fashion : 

You  will  first  obtain  five  round  sticks  of  wood  thirty- 
six  feet  long,  more  or  less,  according  to  the  length  you 
desire  to  make  the  boat.  These  must  be  as  light  as  possi- 
ble, and  not  over  two  inches  in  diameter.  Since  the  coun- 
try produces  no  wood,  you  will  of  course  have  to  go  to 
the  governor  for  the  materials,  which  he  keeps  in  his  store- 
house, replenishing  the  stock  each  year  by  shipments  from 
Denmark.  But  since  you  will  not  find  a  stick  thirty-six 
feet  long,  you  will  have  to  procure  several,  which  you  lash 
together  until  you  have  obtained  the  requisite  length. 
Having  done  this,  you  place  three  of  them  on  the  ground 
parallel  with  each  other,  the  outer  ones  being  six  feet 
apart.  Then  across  them,  at  the  middle,  you  lash,  with 
firm  thongs  of  raw  seal-hide,  a  piece  of  inch  plank  three 
inches  wide  and  six  feet  long.  Then  you  bring  the  ends 
of  the  three  long  sticks  together,  lashing  them  firmly. 
Next  you  lash  other  pieces  of  board  across  at  intervals  of 
two  feet.  Of  course  these  are  of  different  lengths.  Thus 
you  have  obtained  the  bottom  of  your  oomiak.  This  done, 
you  proceed  to  erect  the  skeleton,  fastening  the  stem  and 
stern  posts  firmly  with  lashings ;  also  the  ribs.  The  ribs 
in  their  place,  you  secure  along  the  inside  of  them,  at  about 
sixteen  inches  above  the  floor,  a  strip  of  plank.  On  this 
you  place  the  thwarts,  the  middle  one  being  six  feet  long. 


54  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

the  others  shorter,  as  you  approach  either  end.  Ten 
thwarts  is  the  proper  number.  This  completes  the  skele- 
ton, all  but  the  placing  of  the  rails  or  gunwales,  which 
are  the  two  remaining  thirty-six  feet  sticks.  These  being 
fastened  with  thongs  to  the  ribs,  and  to  the  stem  and 
stern  posts,  your  skeleton  is  finished,  and  it  is  exceedingly 
light,  strong,  and  elastic.  But  now,  instead  of  covering 
this  novel  sort  of  boat-skeleton  with  planking,  you  stretch 
over  it  a  coat  of  seal-hide  (it  can  scarcely  be  called  leath- 
er). It  has  been,  however,  tanned  and  dried,  and  after- 
wards thoroughly  saturated  with  oil,  until  it  is  as  imper- 
vious to  water  as  a  plate  of  iron.  A  number  of  skins  are 
necessarily  required,  and  these  the  women  will  sew  to- 
gether for  you  so  firmly  with  sinew  thread  that  not  a 
drop  of  water  can  find  its  way  through  the  seams.  This 
skin  coat,  being  cut  and  fashioned  to  fit  the  skeleton  as 
neatly  as  a  slipper  to  the  foot,  is  drawn  on  and  firmly  tied. 
It  is  very  soft  when  you  draw  it  on,  but  when  it  dries  it  is 
as  tight  and  hard  as  a  drum-head ;  and  when  the  skin  be- 
comes a  little  old,  the  light  will  come  through  it  as  through 
parchment.  When  afloat  in  the  oomiak,  you  can  always 
discover  how  much  water  you  are  drawing  by  looking 
through  the  side  of  it.  This  is  not  a  pleasant  operation, 
however,  for  a  novice  or  a  nervous  person,  since  one  can 
hardly  resist  the  impression  that  he  is  in  a  very  treach- 
erous sort  of  craft. 

This  light  and  elastic  boat  is  propelled  with  short  oars 
having  broad  blades,  which  are  tied  to  the  gunwale,  in- 
stead of  being  thrust  out  through  rowlocks.  These  oars 
are  shod  with  bone,  to  protect  them  from  the  ice.  A  sin- 
gle mast  is  erected  in  the  bow,  upon  which  is  run  up  a 
square  sail  when  the  wind  is  fair.  If  the  owner  of  the 
boat  is  rich  enough,  he  gets  the  material  for  his  sail  from 
the  governor ;  but  if  not,  he  makes  it  out  of  seal-skins. 


UP  THE  FIOHD  IN  AN  OOM1AK.  55 

I  have  observed  that  he  gets  the  wood  from  the  gov- 
ernor's stores :  not  all  of  it,  however,  for  the  obliging  sea 
brings  him  an  occasional  tree  that  has  floated  with  the 
ocean  current  from  the  forests  of  Siberia ;  or  a  plank,  per- 
haps, that  has  fallen  overboard  from  a  passing  vessel ;  or 
a  spar  or  other  portion  of  a  wreck.  Thus,  before  the 
Danes  came  here,  did  the  Esquimaux  obtain  all  the  wood 
they  used.  From  this  source  they  also  procured  their 
iron,  in  the  shape  of  spikes,  nails,  bands,  and  bars,  attach- 
ed to  these  waifs  of  the  sea.  Thus  do  the  ocean  currents, 
which  carry  heat  and  cold  to  the  uttermost  parts  of  the 
earth,  scatter  also  blessings  to  mankind. 

After  some  unavoidable  delays  (always  occurring  when 
any  body  sets  out  anywhere  and  some  other  body  is  to  go 
with  him),  we  finally  got  all  our  traps  in  the  oomiak. 
The  photographers  were  aboard  with  their  cameras,  baths, 
and  plates;  the  artists  with  their  sketch-books,  stools, 
and  pencils;  the  surveyors  with  their  sextants,  barome- 
ters, compasses,  and  tape-lines;  the  hunters  with  their 
weapons,  game-bags,  and  ammunition ;  the  steward  with 
his  cooking  fixtures,  and  substantial  eatables  and  drinka- 
bles;  "the  Arctic  Six"  were  at  their  stations;  and  "All 
aboard !"  was  the  signal  to  shove  oif.  The  fair  oarswom- 
en  dipped  their  paddles,  rising  with  the  act,  and  coming 
down  with  a  good  solid  thud  upon  the  thwart  when  the 
paddles  took  the  water.  The  light  boat  shot  away  from 
the  ship  over  the  unruffled  waters  of  the  silvery-surfaced 
fiord ;  and  at  last  we  were  off. 

The  day  could  not  have  been  better  chosen.  The  sky 
was  cloudless ;  and  the  great  mountains,  by  which  we  were 
on  every  side  surrounded,  climbed  up  into  a  pearly  atmos- 
phere, and  their  crests  of  ice  and  snow  blended  softly  with 
the  pure  and  lovely  air.  Every  body  was  in  the  best  pos- 
sible spirits ;  every  thing  was  novel,  from  the  boat  and  its 


56  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

strange  crew  to  the  strange  shore  past  which  we  were 
gliding,  and  which  presented  sometimes  cliffs  of  immense 
height,  and  sometimes  slopes  of  green,  above  which  the 
atmosphere  quivered  in  the  sun's  warm  rays. 

I  could  but  contrast  my  situation  with  that  of  a  few 
days  before,  when  I  was  sweltering  in  the  summer  heat  of 
New  York.  The  atmosphere  was  soft  like  that  of  bud- 
ding spring,  though  close  to  the  Arctic  Circle,  and  within 
the  region  lighted  by  the  midnight  sun. 

The  scenery  was  everywhere  grand  and  inspiring.  The 
shores,  though  destitute  of  human  life,  were  yet  rich  in 
historical  association.  As  we  passed  along,  it  was  hard  to 
realize  that  voices  were  not  calling  to  us  from  the  shore ; 
and  where  miles  of  rich  meadow-land  stretched  before  us, 
girdling  the  cliffs  with  green,  the  fancy,  now  catching  the 
lowing  of  cattle  and  the  bleating  of  sheep,  would  some- 
times detect  the  shouts  of  herdsmen;  while  again  we 
seemed  to  hear, 

"By  distance  mellowed,  o'er  the  water's  sweep," 

the  "song  and  oar"  of  some  gay  inhabitant  of  the  fiord, 
descendant  of  that  brave  band  of  men  who,  under  the  lead- 
ership of  sturdy  Eric,  had  on  these  sloping  plains,  beneath 
the  ice-crowned  hills  and  within  the  rampart  of  the  ice- 
girt  isles,  sought  an  asylum  from  their  enemies. 

But  if  the  fancy  discovered  those  evidences  of  life,  as 
it  recalled  the  people  who  once  were  happy  here  in  this 
peaceful,  pastoral  scene,  the  eye  failed  to  detect  any  such 
tokens  whatever.  An  occasional  seal,  that  put  up  its  half- 
human  head  to  peer  at  us,  or  a  sparrow  or  butterfly,  that 
hovered  about  us  when  we  neared  the  shore,  or  now  and 
then  a  flock  of  water-fowl,  were  the  only  living  things 
we  saw. 

The  spirit  of  the  scene  was  contagious.     Even  our  na- 


UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK.  57 

tive  crew  were  not  wanting  in  the  emotional  feelings  of 
the  hour.  Encouraged  by  their  pastor,  they  broke  forth 
in  concert,  and  with  rich  melodious  voices,  timed  to  the 
paddles'  stroke,  they  sang  an  old  Norse  hymn : 

"Oh,  hear  thou  me,  thou  mighty  Lord, 

And  this  my  cry,  oh,  heed ; 
Oh,  give  me  faith ;  I  trust  thy  word ; 
Oh,  help  me  in  my  need;" 

and  as  the  refrain  was  echoed  back  to  us  over  the  waters 
from  hill  and  dale,  it  struck  the  fancy  more  and  more 
that  human  voices  came  to  us  from  the  depths  of  those 
solitudes. 

Five  hours  of  this  pleasant  experience  brought  us  near 
the  end  of  the  fiord,  where  the  water  is  narrowed  to  about 
two  miles ;  but  long  before  this  the  solemnity  of  the  day 
had  been  at  times  broken  by  incidents  very  different  from 
those  above  described.  In  fact,  there  was  a  great  deal  of 
liveliness  mingled  with  the  seriousness  which  every  body 
felt  at  times,  perhaps  in  spite  of  himself.  The  Prince  was, 
as  usual,  at  the  bottom  of  the  most  of  it.  That  young  gen- 
tleman had  come  out  to  enjoy  himself,  and  have  a  good 
time  of  it  generally,  and  his  disposition  was  not  to  be  re- 
strained by  any  of  the  ghosts  of  ancient  Northmen  who 
might  haunt  the  fiord.  He  attached  himself  to  Concordia 
as  a  matter  of  course.  Speaking  metaphorically,  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that  he  had  had  his  eye  upon  that  pantalooned 
lady  (now  bow-oar)  ever  since  he  first  discovered  her  peep- 
ing around  the  corner  of  the  house  in  Julianashaab.  It 
was  not  to  be  supposed,  therefore,  that  he  would  on  the 
present  occasion  relax  his  visual  energies,  and  his  first  pro- 
cedure was  to  place  himself  beside  her  on  the  thwart, 
where  he  carried  his  admiration  so  far  as  to  insist  upon 
relieving  the  fair  oarswornan  of  her  oar,  which  resulted  in 

C2 


58  THE  LAND   Off  DESOLATION. 

a  great  deal  of  sport  between  the  parties  immediately  in- 
terested, and  filled  the  minds  of  the  other  damsels  with 
immense  disgust  —  whether  because  no  one  offered  them 
the  same  gallant  attentions,  or  whether  because  the  bow- 
oar  was  constantly  interfering  with  the  stroke,  was  not 
discovered ;  but  I  greatly  suspect  it  was  the  latter  rather 
than  the  former. 

Thus,  with  alternate  gayety  and  solemnity,  did  we  speed 
on  through  the  pleasant  sunshine.  In  a  general  way  we 
might  say  that  there  was  universal  enjoyment  in  that 
oomiak;  but  outside  of  it  there  was  not  altogether  so 
happy  a  condition  of  affairs.  The  lively  proceedings  of 
Concordia  and  the  Prince  struck  terror  into  one  heart 
which  beat  its  troubled  discord  in  the  confinement  of  a 
native  kayak.  The  unhappy  possessor  of  this  discordant 
heart  was  a  half-breed,  whose  name  was  Marcus,  and  who, 
although  a  half-savage,  was  yet  wholly  a  Christian  in  the 
matter  of  name  and  baptism. 

This  Marcus  was  a  fine-looking  fellow,  with  brown  hair 
and  eyes,  a  frank  open  face,  the  complexion,  though  not 
the  features,  leaning  rather  to  the  Esquimaux  than  the 
Danish  hue.  The  only  trouble  with  him  was  —  and  this 
appeared  to  distress  him  greatly — that  he  loved  Concor- 
dia. Judging  from  that  distress,  he  must  have  loved  her 
desperately. 

Marcus  was  a  great  favorite  with  the  pastor,  and  he  al- 
ways accompanied  him  everywhere  he  went.  His  duty 
was  a  simple  one  enough,  but  a  very  necessary  one,  as 
boating  is  performed  in  the  Greenland  fiords.  It  was  to 
paddle  along  beside  the  oomiak  in  the  capacity  of  courier, 
if  occasion  made  it  necessary  to  use  one ;  or,  in  case  of 
need,  to  act  as  outrider — two  functions  which  at  once  sug- 
gest the  dangers  of  oomiak  navigation.  Suppose,  for  in- 
stance, Mr.  Anthon  is  caught  in  a  heavy  blow,  and  is  broad- 


UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK.  59 

side  to  the  wind.  His  boat  is  liable  to  be  blown  over,  ow- 
ing to  its  lightness.  Marcus  is  near  at  hand ;  he  pulls  up 
quickly  alongside,  seizes  the  gunwale  of  the  boat,  bears 
his  weight  upon  it,  and  prevents  a  catastrophe.  Again, 
the  oomiak  runs  against  a  sharp  piece  of  ice,  which  the 
steersman  has  not  seen  in  time  to  avoid ;  a  hole  is  cut  in 
the  skin,  and  in  rushes  the  water.  The  boat  is  headed  for 
the  land,  and  the  pastor  and  his  ladies  get  ashore  with 
their  lives.  But  where  shall  they  go,  or  what  shall  they 
do  ?  They  are,  perhaps,  on  an  island,  or,  if  not,  they  have 
to  scale  a  mountain  and  descend  again  before  they  can 
reach  a  settlement.  Marcus  saves  them  this  labor,  and 
very  likely  their  lives,  by  flying  away  in  his  kayak  and 
bringing  succor. 

Twice  during  the  day  it  seemed  to  me  that  we  had 
met  with  a  fatal  accident  of  this  nature.  The  skin  of  the 
boat  was  cut  and  the  water  entered,  but  the  circumstance 
caused  no  alarm.  The  cuts  proved  to  be  small,  and  one 
woman  only  left  her  oar  to  repair  them.  This  she  did, 
and  very  speedily,  by  thrusting  into  the  cut  a  small  piece 
of  blubber,  which  answered  every  purpose  until  we  reached 
a  convenient  landing-place,  when  the  boat  was  drawn  up 
on  the  beach  far  enough  for  the  woman  to  get  at  the  hole 
with  the  sinew-threaded  needle,  when  a  patch  was  quickly 
fastened  over  it,  and  the  skin  was  as  good  as  ever. 

That  Marcus  was  jealous  of  the  Prince,  any  body  could 
see  with  half  an  eye.  But  a  kayak  is  a  most  inconvenient 
place  for  a  jealous  lover.  It  is  only  a  little  over  a  foot 
wide,  and  does  not  weigh  half  as  much  as  the  man  him- 
self. If  he  meditates  mischief  to  his  rival,  his  own  situa- 
tion becomes  a  very  dangerous  one,  since  the  least  indis- 
cretion in  his  movements,  or  the  imprudent  withdrawal  of 
his  eyes  from  his  frail  boat,  would  very  likely  cause  him 
to  find  himself  suddenly  floating  head  down,  with  his 


60  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

bladder-like  kayak  inextricably  fastened  to  his  heels — a 
position  that  would  very  speedily  cure  the  most  ardent 
lover  in  the  world  of  the  highly  ridiculous  passion  of  jeal- 
ousy. 

Compromising,  therefore,  between  the  impulse  of  jeal- 
ousy and  the  restraints  of  prudence,  Marcus  paddled  close 
to  the  forward  part  of  our  oomiak,  where  the  Prince  and 
Concordia  were  seated,  as  if  he  would  overhear  their  con- 
versation, and  so  possess  himself  of  some  remark  of  the 
fickle  lady  to  treasure  up  against  her,  thus  the  more  ef- 
fectually to  insure  the  destruction  of  his  peace  of  mind — 
a  pastime,  by-the-way,  in  which  lovers  are  very  apt  to  in- 
dulge themselves. 

If  this  was,  however,  his  design,  he  unfortunately  failed 
in  it,  since  there  was  no  conversation  audible.  Like  Hai- 
dee,  our  heroine  had  long  since  discovered  that  her  Don 
did  not;  understand  a  word  she  said.  Yet,  judging  from 
his  liveliness  of  manner,  the  Prince  must  have  learned 
something  agreeable  to  his  feelings;  and  it  was  clear 
enough  that  he  was  being  instructed  after  a  fashion  quite 
equal,  if  not  superior,  to  the  ordinary  forms  of  speech,  for 
this  fair  lady  of  the  oar 

"Had  recourse  to  nods,  and  signs, 
And  smiles,  and  sparkles  of  the  speaking  eye, 
And  read  (the  only  book  she  could)  the  lines 
Of  his  fair  face," 

which  seemed  to  be  quite  enough  to  satisfy  her  capricious 
fancy. 

The  time  passed  scarcely  less  pleasantly  to  the  rest  of 
the  party  than  to  the  Prince,  although  in  a  very  different 
manner.  At  least  there  was  no  lack  of  lively  episodes, 
and  we  all  found  ourselves  much  surprised  when  we  dis- 
covered that  we  were  approaching  the  end  of  the  fiord, 
which  had  now  assumed  less  the  appearance  of  a  river 


UP  THE  FIORD  IN  AN  OOMIAK.  61 

and  more  that  of  a  lake.  Before  us  the  water  was  lost  to 
view  by  a  great  curve,  from  the  middle  of  which  there  ap- 
peared a  fine  valley  stretching  away  to  the  base  of  the 
Redkammen,  one  of  the  noblest  mountains  to  the  artist's 
eye,  and  one  of  the  boldest  landmarks  to  the  mariner  in 
all  the  country,  conspicuous  as  Greenland  is  for  its  lofty 
and  commanding  scenery. 

And  there  Redkammen  stood  in  its  solitary  grandeur, 
away  up  in  a  streak  of  fleecy  summer  clouds,  its  white  top 
now  melting  with  them  into  space,  now  standing  out 
against  a  sky  of  tenderest  blue.  Then  came  a  cloak  of 
darker  vapor,  which,  resting  on  the  mountain's  summit, 
trailed  away  into  the  heavens,  bridging  the  space  which 
divides  the  known  from  the  vast  unknown. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  RUINS  OF  ERICSFIORD. 

WE  were  not  long  now  in  reaching  our  destination, 
which  was  the  foot  of  the  extensive  green  slope  on  the 
north,  side  of  the  fiord.  Above  this  slope,  and  from  a 
quarter  to  half  a  mile  from  the  bank,  the  cliffs  rise  perpen- 
dicularly to  an  altitude  of  fifteen  hundred  feet.  To  our 
right,  as  we  approached,  rose  a  lofty  range  of  hills,  which 
separates  the  two  branches  of  the  fiord.  Beyond  these 
once  flourished  the  colonies  of  Brattahlid  and  Gardar. 
Behind  and  to  the  left  of  us  lies  the  island  of  Aukpeit- 
savik,  which  extends  almost  to  Julianashaab. 

Our  first  concern  was  to  discover  if  the  church  which 
we  knew  to  have  existed  there  was  still  standing.  To  our 
great  satisfaction,  its  walls  were  seen  upon  the  green  slope 
long  before  we  reached  the  land,  although  a  cliff  some 
thirty  feet  high,  which  formed  its  background,  prevented 
us  from  observing  it  clearly  until  we  had  come  almost  to 
the  shore. 

Upon  landing,  there  was  a  great  scramble  for  the  honor 
of  first  entrance  into  the  ruin.  The  scramble  was  over  a 
tangled  growth  of  trailing  junipers,  crake-berry,  whortle- 
berry, and  willow  bushes,  which  grew  in  a  rich  grassy  sod 
that  exhibited  many  plants  in  bloom,  among  which  were 
conspicuous  the  dandelion,  butter-cup,  bluebell,  crow's-foot, 
and  cochlearia. 

Leaving  the  party  to  their  various  occupations — the 
artists  to  their  several  chosen  tasks,  the  crew  to  get  the 
boat  ashore  and  cook  the  dinner,  the  lovers  to  their  j 


THE  RUINS  OF  ERICSFIORD.  65 

ousies,  and  the  maids  to  their  coquetry,  I  set  out  with  two 
friendly  assistants  to  make  a  complete  survey  of  the 
ground. 

The  hill-side  upon  which  stood  the  ancient  town  of  Kra- 
kortok  is  much  broken,  but  there  are  many  level  patches, 
rich  with  vegetation,  which  seem  to  have  been  once  culti- 
vated, and  even  now  appear  like  arable  lands.  Small 
streams  course  through  them,  giving  a  fine  supply  of  clear 
fresh  water.  Beside  these  streams  the  angelica  grows 
to  the  height  of  three  feet.  The  stem  of  this  plant  fur- 
nishes the  only  native  production  of  the  soil  that  the 
Esquimaux  use  for  food,  if  we  except  the  cochlearia  or 
scurvy  grass,  which  is  but  little  valued,  and  is  not  nutri- 
tious. It  is  said  that  the  old  Northmen  cultivated  barley 
here,  and  no  one  would  doubt  that  such  a  thing  were  pos- 
sible. Even  at  the  present  time,  if  one  might  judge  by 
the  day  of  our  visit  as  typical  of  the  season,  barley  might 
grow  and  ripen  readily.  Yet  Mr.  Anthon  informed  me  that 
such  days  were  liable  to  be  followed  by  severe  frosts,  and 
that  in  any  case  the  season  is  too  short  for  complete  frui- 
tion. There  is,  therefore,  no  attempt  made  in  any  part  of 
Greenland,  not  even  here  in  Ericsfiord,  to  raise  any  thing 
more  than  the  ordinary  garden  vegetables — namely,  such 
of  the  crucifera  as  lettuce,  radishes,  and  cabbage — all  of 
which  flourish  admirably  as  far  up  as  the  Arctic  Circle.  The 
agricultural  products  of  Greenland  are  not,  therefore,  to  be 
regarded  as  important  in  a  commercial  point  of  view, 
though,  with  care,  each  inhabitant  of  Ericsfiord  might  be 
well  provided  with  every  needful  garden  luxury.  Pota- 
toes would  grow,  I  believe,  if  they  would  only  take  the 
trouble  to  cultivate  them  properly.  To  perfect  any  of  the 
cereals  would,  however,  be  at  present  a  hopeless  under- 
taking. 

Yet  the  whole  region  about  Krakortok  bears  evidence 


0<i  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

of  former  cultivation.  Garden  patches  were  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  all  the  buildings.  The  church  and  two  other 
buildings  were  inclosed  by  a  wall,  the  outlines  of  which  I 
had  no  difficulty  in  determining,  and  which,  judging  from 
the  mass  of  stones,  must  have  been  about  five  feet' high. 

The  church  interested  rne  most.  Its  walls  are  still  quite 
perfect  to  from  ten  to  eighteen  feet  altitude,  and  even 
the  form  of  the  gable  is  yet  preserved.  The  door-ways, 
three  in  number,  are  not  in  the  least  disturbed  by  time ; 
the  windows  are  mostly  entire,  except  on  the  north  side, 
and  the  arched  window  in  the  eastern  end  is  nearly  per- 
fect. Beneath  this  window  was  the  chancel,  and  the 
church  was  constructed  with  singular  exactness  as  to  ori- 
entation. This  could  scarcely  be  by  accident,  for  the  same 
accuracy  is  to  be  observed  in  all  the  other  sacred  build- 
ings that  have  been  discovered  in  the  neighborhood— the 
walls  standing  within  less  than  one  degree  of  the  meridian 
line,  and  even  this  may  have  been  an  error  of  my  instru- 
ment which  I  had  not  the  means  of  correcting,  rather  than 
an  error  of  the  Northmen.  They  were  evidently  close 
observers  of  the  movements  of  the  heavenly  bodies,  and 
must  have  known  the  north  with  great  exactness,  and  they 
built  their  church  walls  accordingly.  These  walls  were 
four  and  a  half  feet  thick.  The  stones  were  flat,  and  no 
cement  appears  to  have  been  used  other  than  blue  clay. 

In  one  angle  of  the  church-yard  there  had  been  a  build- 
ing which  I  supposed  to  have  been  the  almonry ;  and  in 
another  part  was  the  house  of  the  priest  or  bishop,  the 
walls  of  which  are  still  perfect  to  the  top  of  the  door-way, 
and  one  of  the  windows. 

Outside  the  church  Avail,  but  not  far  removed  from  it, 
there  was  a  building  evidently  of  much  pretension.  It 
was  divided  into  three  compartments,  and  was  sixty-four 
by  thirty-two  feet.  There  was  another  still  farther  to  the 


THE  RUINS  OF  ERICSFIORD.  69 

westward,  others  to  the  east,  and  one  on  the  natural  ter- 
race above  the  church.  Altogether  the  cluster  of  build- 
ings which  composed  the  church  estate — where  dwelt  the 
officers  who  governed  the  country  round  about,  and  ad- 
ministered in  this  distant  place,  at  what  was  then  thought 
to  be  "  the  farthest  limit  of  the  habitable  globe,"  the  or- 
dinances of  the  pope  at  Rome — were  nine  in  number :  a 
church,  a  tomb,  an  almonry,  five  dwellings,  and  one  round 
structure ;  the  walls  of  which  latter  building  had,  like 
those  of  the  church-yard,  completely  fallen,  but  the  outline 
of  the  foundation  was  preserved.  The  walls  had  been  four 
feet  thick,  and  the  diameter  of  the  building  in  the  clear 
was  forty -eight  feet.  It  had  but  one  door- way,  which 
opened  towards  the  church. 

'To  call  this  circular  building  a  tower,  in  the  sense  of  its 
application  to  the  famous  round  towers  of  Ireland,  would 
be  a  great  stretch  of  the  imagination.  There  is,  however, 
a  strange  coincidence  in  the  circumstance  of  proximity  to 
a  church.  Near  all  the  church  edifices  that  have  been  dis- 
covered in  Greenland  a  structure  similar  to  this  one  at 
Krakortok  has  been  found.  None  of  them  are,  however, 
so  large:  its  walls  could  not  have  been  more  than  seven  or 
eight  feet  high.  Its  uses  are  unknown.  Possibly  it  may 
have  been  a  work  of  military  defense,  perhaps  a  baptis- 
tery ;  there  is  nothing,  however,  except  its  shape,  to  indi- 
cate that  it  was  not  a  cow-house. 

After  completing  my  survey  of  this  church  estate,  I 
visited  other  parts  of  the  fiord.  The  buildings  have  been 
very  numerous  hereabout,  but  all  except  the  church  and 
bishop's  house  are  now  levelled  with  the  earth,  and  so 
overgrown  with  willow,  juniper,  and  birch  that  even  their 
outline  is  scarcely  distinguishable. 

What  a  wonderful  change  !  what  a  sad  wreck  of  human- 
ity !  Here  people,  weary  with  war,  had  come  to  cultivate 


70  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

the  arts  of  peace ;  here  they  had  built  strong  and  comfort- 
able dwellings ;  here  they  had  reared  herds  of  cattle  and 
flocks  of  sheep  upon  pastures  of  limitless  extent;  here 
they  had  worshipped  God  according  to  the  dictates  of 
their  consciences ;  and  now  where  are  they  ?  nothing  left 
but  this  "ruined  trace."  A  single  inscription  on  a  tomb- 
stone, carved  in  Runic  characters,  is  all  the  record  that  re- 
mains besides  the  crumbled  walls.  This  inscription  reads  : 

"  Vigdis,  daughter  of  M  *  *  *,  rests  here.     May  God 
rejoice  her  soul." 

And  may  God  rejoice  the  souls  of  all  of  those  worthies 
of  the  olden  time  ! 

I  could  not  fail  to  experience  a  feeling  of  sadness  as  I 
stood  beside  the  tombs  of  a  people  now  utterly  extinct.  It 
seemed  as  if  voices  from  the  past  were  speaking  to  me 
from  out  the  crumbling  church,  from  the  almonry  where 
the  priest  dispensed  his  alms,  from  the  holy-water  stoup, 
from  the  tomb-stones  bearing  the  sacred  emblems  of  our 
Christian  faith ;  from  everywhere,  indeed,  there  was  a  si- 
lent whispering  that  here  a  Christian  people  once  dwelt  in 
peace,  and  from  temples  dedicated  to  Almighty  God  arose 
their  anthems  of  praise  above  the  glittering  crests  of 
snow.  That  they  should  ever  have  come  here  seems,  how- 
ever, more  strange  than  that  they  should  have  perished  as 
they  did. 

NOTE. — The  ruins  of  Krakortok,  shown  on  page  67,  were  visited  by  Cap- 
tain Graah  in  1828,  as  the  cap-stone  over  the  church  door-way  (west  end) 
will  testify  for  many  a  day.  This  cap-stone  is  12  feet  7  inches  long  by  2 
feet  2  inches  wide,  and. averages  8  inches  thick.  It  bears  this  inscription 
— G.  M.  G.  M.  &  V.  MDCCCXVIII— initial  letters,  standing  for  Graah, 
Mathiesen,  Gram,  Motzfeldt,  and  Vahl,  the  visiting  party. — See  Graah 's 
Narrative,  p.  38. 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  GREENLAND.  71 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  NORTHMEN  IN  GREENLAND. 

THESE  Northmen  were  certainly  a  very  wonderful  peo- 
ple, and  they  did  very  wonderful  things ;  but  of  all  their 
enterprises  the  most  singular  would  seem  to  be  their  com- 
ing to  Greenland,  where  they  were  without  the  lines  of 
conquest  which  were  so  attractive  to  their  brothers  and 
ancestors ;  for  they  were  kindred  of  the  Northman  Hollo, 
son  of  Rognvald,  jarl  of  Maere,  and  king  of  the  Orkneys, 
who  ravaged  the  banks  of  the  Seine,  and  played  buffoon 
with  the  King  of  France ;  the  same  with  those  Danes 
who,  in  Anglo-Saxon  times,  conquered  the  half  of  En- 
gland :  descendants  they  were  of  the  same  Cimbri  who 
threatened  Rome  in  the  days  of  Marius,  and  of  the  Scyth- 
ian soldiers  of  conquered  Mithridates,  who,  under  Odin, 
migrated  from  the  borders  of  the  Euxine  Sea  to  the  north 
of  Europe,  whence  their  posterity  descended  within  a  thou- 
sand years  by  the  Mediterranean,  and  flourished  their  bat- 
tle -  axes  in  the  streets  of  Constantinople ;  fellows  they 
were  of  all  the  sea-kings,  and  vikings,  and  "  barbarians  " 
of  the  North,  whose  god  of  war  was  their  former  general, 
and  who,  scorning  a  peaceful  death,  sought  for  Odin's 
"  bath  of  blood  "  whenever  and  wherever  they  could  find 
it.  In  Greenland  they  appear  like  a  fragment  thrown  off 
from  a  revolving  wheel  by  centrifugal  force.  And  here 
they  seem  to  have  lost  the  traditional  ferocity  of  their 
race,  though  not  its  adventurous  spirit.  Sailing  westward, 
they  discovered  America,  which  was  the  crowning  glory 
of  their  career.  Sailing  eastward,  they  saw  the  light  of 


73  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

Christianity  which  was  breaking  in  the  North,  and  its  bless- 
ings followed  them  to  their  distant  homes. 

These  two  voyages  to  the  west  and  east  symbolize  the 
character  of  this  wonderful  race.  Love  of  change  made 
their  conversion  to  Christianity  easy ;  love  of  adventure 
made  all  enterprises  of  discovery  seem  trifling  hazards, 
and  gave  them  the  world  to  roam  in.  To  their  achieve- 
ments in  the  Western  hemisphere  the  influence  of  the 
Christian  religion  was,  no  doubt,  very  powerful.  It  wean- 
ed them  from  Europe  and  its  perpetual  wars,  and  while  it 
did  not  destroy,  it  turned  their  enterprise  into  a  new  chan- 
nel, and  one  more  consistent  with  the  new  faith. 

The  introduction  of  Christianity  into  Greenland  was  ac- 
complished by  Lief,  son  of  Red  Eric ;  and  it  was  the  same 
man  who  discovered  America — two  grand  achievements 
which  rank  Lief  Ericson  as  one  of  the  heroes  of  history. 
With  respect  to  the  former  event,  an  old  Icelandic  saga 
thus  briefly  records  the  fact : 

"When  fourteen  winters  were  passed  from  the  time 
that  Eric  the  Red  set  forth  to  Greenland,  his  son  Lief  sail- 
ed from  thence  to  Norway,  and  came  thither  in  the  autumn 
that  King  Olaf  Tryggvason  arrived  in  the  North  from 
Helgaland.  Lief  brought  up  his  ship  at  Nidaros  [Dron- 
theim],  and  went  straightway  to  the  king.  Olaf  declared 
unto  him  the  true  faith,  as  was  his  custom  unto  all  hea- 
thens who  came  before  him;  and  it  was  not  hard  for  the 
king  to  persuade  Lief  thereto,  and  he  was  baptized,  and 
with  him  all  his  crew." 

Nor  was  it  hard  for  King  Olaf  to  "  persuade  "  his  sub- 
jects generally  "thereto."  His  Christianity  was  very 
new  and  rather  muscular,  and  under  the  persuasive  influ- 
ence of  the  sword  this  royal  missionary  made  more  prose- 
lytes than  ever  were  made  before  in  the  same  space  of 
time  by  all  the  monks  and  missionaries  put  together. 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  GREENLAND.  73 

When  Lief  came  back  to  Greenland  with  a  new  religion 
and  a  priest  to  boot,  his  father  Eric  was  much  incensed, 
and  declared  the  act  pregnant  with  mischief;  but  after  a 
while  he  was  prevailed  upon  to  acknowledge  the  new  re- 
ligion, and  at  the  same  time  to  give  his  wife  Thjodhilda, 
who  had  proved  a  more  ready  subject  for  conversion,  leave 
to  build  a  church.  Thus  runs  the  saga : 

"  Lief  straightway  began  to  declare  the  universal  faith 
throughout  the  land ;  and  he  laid  before  the  people  the 
message  of  King  Olaf,  and  detailed  unto  them  how  much 
grandeur  and  great  nobleness  there  was  attached  to  the 
new  belief.  Eric  was  slow  to  determine  to  leave  his  an- 
cient faith,  but  Thjodhilda,  his  wife,  was  quickly  persuaded 
thereto,  and  she  built  a  kirk,  which  was  called  'Thjodhil- 
da's  Kirk.'  And  from  the  time  she  received  the  faith  she 
separated  from  her  husband,  which  did  sorely  grieve  him." 

And  this  appears  to  have  been  the  last,  and  (as  the  se- 
quel shows)  was  the  most  potent  argument  for  his  conver- 
sion. To  get  his  wife  back,  he  turned  Christian,  and  or- 
dered the  pagan  rites  to  be  discontinued,  and  the  pagan 
images  of  Thor,  and  Odin,  and  the  rest  of  them,  to  be 
broken  up  and  burned. 

Whether  this  first  Greenland  church  of  Thjodhilda's  was 
built  at  Brattahlid,  or  Gardar,  or  Krakortok,  can  not  now 
be  positively  said ;  but  we  might,  perhaps,  find  some  rea- 
son to  conclude  it  was  the  latter,  from  the  fact  that  an  old 
man  named  Grima,  as  the  saga  states,  who  lived  then  at 
Brattahlid,  made  complaint,  "  I  get  but  seldom  to  the 
church  to  hear  the  words  of  learned  clerks,  for  it  is  a  long 
journey  thereto." 

This  much,  however,  we  do  know,  that  the  church  — 
wherever  it  was  situated  —  was  begun  in  the  year  1002, 
and  was  known  far  and  wide  by  the  name  of  its  pious 
lady  -  founder.  Several  churches  and  three  monasteries 

D 


74  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

were  built  afterwards.  One  of  these  latter  was  near  a 
boiling  spring,  the  waters  from  which,  being  carried 
through  the  building  in  pipes,  gave  a  pleasant  warmth  to 
the  good  monks  who  occupied  it,  and  they  needed  no  other 
heat  the  year  round. 

The  Christian  population  of  Greenland  became,  in  course 
of  time,  so  numerous  that  it  was  necessary  for  the  Bishop 
of  Iceland  to  come  over  there  frequently  to  administer  the 
duties  of  that  part  of  his  see ;  for  the  diocese  of  Gardar, 
as  it  was  called,  was  from  the  first  attached  to  the  See  of 
Iceland. 

A  hundred  years  thus  passed  away,  and  both  in  spiritual 
and  temporal  matters  the  Northmen  in  Greenland  were 
getting  along  finely.  Their  intercourse  with  Europe  was 
regular,  and  their  export  trade,  especially  in  beef,  was 
considerable.  Indeed,  Greenland  beef  was  for  a  long  time 
highly  prized  in  Norway,  and  there  was  no  greater  luxury 
to  "  set  before  the  king."  The  people  were  almost  wholly 
independent  of  the  Icelandic  government.  Under  a  sys- 
tem of  their  own  devising,  which  appears  to  have  perfect- 
ly satisfied  their  necessities,  they  lived  quite  unmolested 
by  the  outside  world,  and,  undisturbed  by  wars  and  ru- 
mors of  wars,  the  descendants  of  Eric  the  Red  were  as 
happy  as  any  people  need  wish  to  be. 

They  lacked  only  one  thing  to  complete  their  scheme  of 
perfect  independence  :  they  needed  a  bishop  of  their  own, 
which  would  cut  them  loose  from  Iceland  altogether ;  and, 
in  truth,  the  Icelanders  were  such  a  liberty-loving  people 
that  they  were  in  no  wise  disposed  to  dispute  their  claims. 
But  a  bishop  they  could  not  have  without  the  sanction  of 
the  powers  that  ruled  in  Norway ;  for  the  pope  would  not 
appoint  so  high  an  officer  for  any  of  the  regions  directly 
or  indirectly  subject  to  the  control  of  Norway  except 
upon  the  nomination  of  the  king,  after  consultation  with 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  GREENLAND.  75 

his  spiritual  advisers.  Numerous  petitions  were  accord- 
ingly sent  over  to  the  king,  in  order  to  secure  his  good 
offices.  For  a  time  these  efforts  were  attended  with  but 
partial  success,  since  a  temporary  bishop  only  was  vouch- 
safed them  in  the  person  of  Eric  (not  the  Red),  who  went 
to  Greenland  in  the  year  1120,  and,  without  remaining  long, 
returned  home,  having,  however,  visited  Vinland  in  the  in- 
terval— this  Vinland  being  the  America  which  Columbus 
thought  to  be  a  part  of  Asia  some  four  centuries  later. 

Finding  they  did  not  get  a  bishop  of  their  own  accord- 
ing to  their  deserts  (as  they  estimated  them),  they  grew 
indignant,  and  one  of  their  chief  men,  named  Sokke,  de- 
clared that  they  must  and  would  have  one.  Their  person- 
al honor  and  the  national  pride  demanded  it ;  and,  indeed, 
the  Christian  faith  itself  was  not  in  safety  otherwise.  Ac- 
cordingly, under  the  advice  of  Sokke,  a  large  present  of 
walrus  ivory  and  valuable  furs  was  voted  to  the  King  of 
Norway ;  and  Einer,  son  of  Sokke,  was  commissioned  to 
carry  the  petition  and  the  present. 

The  result  proved  that  the  inhabitants  of  Ericsfiord 
were  wise  in  their  day  and  generation;  for  whether 
through  the  earnestness  of  their  appeals,  or  the  value  of 
their  gifts,  or  through  the  persuasiveness  of  the  ambassa- 
dor, or  through  all  combined,  they  obtained,  in  the  year 
1126,  Bishop  Arnold,  who  forthwith  founded  his  Episcopal 
See  at  Gardar,  and  there  erected  a  cathedral,  which  was 
built  in  the  form  of  a  cross. 

Arnold  seems  to  have  been  a  most  excellent  and  pious 
leader  of  these  struggling  Christians.  Zealous  as  the  fa- 
mous monk  of  lona,  without  the  impulsiveness  of  that 
great  apostle  of  Scotland,  he  bound  his  charge  together  in 
the  bonds  of  Christian  love,  and  gave  unity  and  happiness 
to  a  prosperous  people.  He  died  in  the  year  1152,  and 
thenceforth,  until  1409,  the  See  of  Gardar,  which  he  had 


76  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

founded,  was  regularly  maintained.  According  to  Baron 
Halberg,  in  his  history  of  Denmark,  seventeen  successive 
bishops  administered  the  ordinances  of  the  Church  in 
Greenland,  the  list  terminating  with  Andreas,  who  was 
consecrated  in  1406.  The  see  and  Andreas  expired  to- 
gether ;  and  the  last  account  we  have  of  either  was  made 
in  1409,  when  it  is  recorded  that  he  officiated  at  a  mar- 
riage, from  the  issue  of  which  men  now  living  are  proud 
to  trace  their  ancestry.  This  was  his  last  official  act,  so 
far  as  we  have  record. 

But  the  people  did  not  then  wholly  disappear,  even  if 
the  official  see  ceased  to  exist.  To  the  causes  which  led 
to  their  final  overthrow  we  shall  have  occasion  to  refer 
presently. 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA.  77 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA. 

To  complete  the  account  of  the  Northmen  who  dwelt 
upon  the  banks  of  Ericsfiord,  it  is  necessary  to  trace  some 
of  their  voyages  to  the  West. 

Lief,  the  son  of  Eric,  was  a  man  of  restless  disposition. 
Not  content  with  Greenland,  he  had  visited  Europe,  and 
had  there  studied  in  the  very  practical  school  which  the 
Northmen  took  gooil  care  always  to  have  in  operation — 
the  art  of  war.  Dissatisfied  with  paganism,  he  accepted 
the  Christian  faith,  as  we  have  seen,  and  carried  it  to  his 
own  country.  Afterwards,  wearied  with  the  enforced  mo- 
notony of  his  life  at  Ericsfiord,  he  determined  to  discover 
new  lands  for  himself,  as  his  father  had  done  before  him, 
and  also,  like  his  father,  he  sought  them  in  the  West.  He 
set  sail  in  the  year  1001,  soon  after  his  return  from  Nor- 
way. Crossing  what  we  now  call  Davis's  Strait,  he  first 
sighted  Labrador.  Not  liking  the  looks  of  it,  any  more 
than  his  father  had  liked  the  first  sight  he  had  of  the  east 
coast  of  Greenland,  he  sailed  south  until  he  came  to  New- 
foundland, where  he  landed.  Thence  he  proceeded  on  his 
voyage,  discovering  Nova  Scotia ;  and  finally  he  arrived  at 
a  place  which  he  called  Wonderstrand,  where  he  wintered. 
This  was  probably  the  peninsula  now  called  Cape  Cod,  in 
Massachusetts.  Thence  he  returned  to  Brattahlid,  in 
Ericsfiord,  and  ever  afterwards  bore  the  name  of  Lief  the 
Lucky. 

His  brother  Thorwald  followed  after  him  the  next  year, 
and  the  new  land  was  called  Vinland  ( Vinland  Jiin  goda), 


78  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

from  the  great  quantities  of  wild  grapes  they  found  there, 
and  of  which  they  made  wine.  Thorwald  was  set  upon 
and  killed  by  savages,  whom  they  called  Skraellings,  from 
their  diminutive  stature. 

A  third  brother,  Thorstein,  went  in  search  of  Thorwald's 
body  the  next  year,  and  died  without  finding  it.  Then, 
after  this  further  disaster,  Lief,  who  had  now  succeeded 
Red  Eric,  his  father,  in  the  government  of  the  colonies  of 
Ericsfiord,  resolved  no  longer  to  pursue  the  enterprise. 
No  settlement  had  been  made,  and  no  profit  had  yet  ac- 
crued to  the  daring  men  who  had  undertaken  it.  The  na- 
tives were  very  numerous  and  hostile,  and  the  people  could 
only  live  in  a  fortified  camp. 

Nothing  more  would,  in  all  probability,  have  been  at- 
tempted, had  not  a  rich  Iceland  merchant  come  to  Brat- 
tahlid,  named  Thorfin  Karlsefne,  and  surnamed  the  Hope- 
ful. This  was  in  1006.  While  at  Brattahlid,  he  was  the 
guest  of  Lief,  with  whom  he  spent  the  winter.  There  was 
much  feasting,  especially  at  Yule-time,  and  some  love-mak- 
ing besides,  for  Thorfin  married  Gudrid,  widow  of  Thor- 
stein, before  spring  came.  They  spoke  much  about  Vin- 
land,  and  finally  they  resolved  on  a  voyage  thither.  Ac- 
cordingly they  got  together  a  company  of  one  hundred 
and  sixty,  of  whom  five  were  women,  Gudrid  being  one. 
"  Then,"  according  to  the  saga, "  they  made  an  agreement 
with  Karlsefne  that  each  should  have  equal  share  they 
made  of  gain.  They  had  with  them  all  kinds  of  cattle, 
intending  to  settle  in  Vinland." 

They  sailed  on  their  voyage  in  the  spring,  and  came  to 
Wonderstrand,  where  Lief  had  erected  houses.  These  they 
found ;  but  not  liking  the  place,  they  proceeded  to  Mount 
Hope  Bay,  in  Rhode  Island.  But  the  natives  came  out  of 
the  woods,  and  troubled  them  so  much  that  they  had  no 
peace.  Finally  a  great  battle  was  fought,  in  which  many 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA.  79 

of  the  natives  were  killed,  as  were  also  several  of  the 
whites.  Some  of  the  latter  fell  into  the  hands  of  their 
enemies,  and  were  called  before  a  council  of  the  tribe,  as 
they  supposed,  to  hear  the  judgment  of  death  pronounced 
upon  them.  To  their  great  surprise,  they  found  the  coun- 
cil presided  over  by  a  man  as  white  as  themselves,  and 
who  addressed  them  in  their  own  language.  He  wore  a 
long  beard,  which  was  very  gray,  but  in  other  respects  he 
was  dressed  like  the  others.  Through  .the  instrumentality 
of  this  man,  who  appeared  to  be  their  chief,  the  whites 
were  liberated  on  condition  of  their  leaving  the  country, 
which  they  did,  after  having  lived  there  three  years. 

This  proved  to  be  a  most  unfortunate  speculation  for 
the  rich  Iceland  merchant.  Its  only  value  to  him  was, 
that  his  wife,  while  there,  bore  him  a  son,  whom  he  called 
Snorre,  and  from  whom  was  descended  a  line  of  men  fa- 
mous in  Iceland  history. 

This  strange  man  whom  they  found  at  the  head  of  the 
Skraellings  proved  to  be  Biorn  Asbrandson,  a  native  of 
Bredifiord,  in  Iceland,  and  who  had  once  been  a  famous 
viking,  or  sea-rover,  and  had  drifted  to  America,  no  one 
knew  how.  Doubtless  it  was  even  before  Lief's  time. 
He  had  left  Iceland,  and  was  never  heard  of  until  Karl- 
seme  returned,  when,  from  certain  articles  which  this  chief 
of  the  savages  gave  him,  with  directions  how  to  dispose 
of  them,  and  from  a  message  which  was  to  be  delivered 
to  Biorn's  former  sweetheart,  the  identity  was  established. 
The  man  himself  would  give  no  explanation  of  who  he 
was,  or  how  he  came  there.  Biorn  was  therefore  proba- 
bly the  first  white  man  to  land  on  the  shores  of  America, 
if  we  may  except  some  Irish  monks  and  others  whose 
adventurous  enterprises  originated  the  idea  of  a  "  white 
man's  land"  far  away  across  the  sea. 

Humboldt,  in  his  Cosmos,  basing  his  observations  on 


80  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

liafn's  "Antiquitatea  Americance"  declares  that  Biorn  un- 
dertook the  voyage  to  the  southward  from  Greenland  in 
986,  the  year  following  Eric's  colonization  of  Ericsfiord. 
There  is,  however,  a  discrepancy  between  his  statement 
and  those  of  others  concerning  the  course  of  Lief,  "  who," 
as  Humboldt  says,  "  first  saw  land  one  degree  south  of 
Boston,  at  the  island  of  Nantucket,  then  Nova  Scotia,  and 
lastly  Newfoundland,  which  was  subsequently  called  Libia 
Helluland,  but  never  '  Vinland.'  The  gulf  which  divides 
Newfoundland  from  the  mouth  of  the  great  river  St.  Law- 
rence was  called  by  the  Northmen,  who  had  settled  in 
Iceland  and  Greenland,  Markland's  Gulf."  Nova  Scotia 
was  called  Markland. 

The  Eric  family  did  not,  however,  altogether  abandon 
the  idea  of  reaping  some  profit  from  America,  even  with 
the  death  of  Thorstein,  for  a  sister  named  Freydis  went  to 
Vinland  in  1011,  and  for  some  time  lived  in  the  same  place 
where  her  brothers  had  lived  before.  More  unfortunate 
than  their  predecessors,  they  fell  not  only  to  fighting  the 
natives,  but  each  other,  being  instigated  thereto  by  Frey- 
dis, who  caused  a  great  number  of  the  party  to  be  treach- 
erously murdered  in  order  that  she  might  get  control  and 
reap  all  the  profit ;  yet  no  good  came  of  it  after  all. 

Other  expeditions  followed  some  years  later ;  but,  so  far 
as  we  know,  there  were  no  actual  settlements  made  by 
these  Northmen  in  America.  Yet  Bishop  Eric  went  to  Vin- 
land in  1121,  during  his  Greenland  mission  (which  would 
make  it  appear  as  if  people  were  there  to  visit),  in  his  min- 
isterial capacity.  Occasional  voyages  were,  however,  made 
to  the  country,  at  least  as  far  as  Nova  Scotia.  As  late 
as  1347,  we  have  written  accounts  of  Greenlanders  going 
from  Ericsfiord  to  Markland  to  cut  timber. 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  foregoing  that  history  presents 
quite  a  number  of  candidates  for  being  the  first  discov- 


THE  NORTHMEN  IN  AMERICA.  81 

erers  of  America.  Who  knows  what  influence  these  ad- 
venturous voyages  of  the  Northmen  may  have  had  upon 
the  discovery  of  America  by  Columbus  ?  That  great  nav- 
igator is  stated  to  have  visited  Iceland  in  1477 ;  and  may 
he  not  then  have  heard  of  this  land  of  the  grape  and  vine 
to  the  westward  ?  and  may  not  the  tales  of  the  Icelanders 
have  encouraged  his  western  aspirations,  which  are  said  to 
have  originated  as  far  back  as  1470  ?  This  supposition 
would  not,  however,  detract  from  the  great  merit  of  Co- 
lumbus; for  the  idea  of  crossing  the  Atlantic,  and  of  reach- 
ing Asia  by  the  west,  was  not  original  with  Columbus, 
nor  even  with  his  generation.  The  glory  was  not  in  the 
conception,  but  in  the  execution.  It  has  been  said  that 
the  name  America  is  "  a  monument  of  man's  ingratitude ;" 
but  this  is  hardly  true,  since  the  name  Columbus  gave  to 
his  own  discoveries  was,  as  we  all  know,  West  Indies,  in 
the  full  belief  that  he  was  within  reach  of  the  rich  treas- 
ures of  the  Orient ;  and  even  after  Columbus's  death,  and 
after  the  conquests  of  Cortez,  Mexico  was  marked  down 
upon  the  maps  of  the  period  as  a  part  of  China,  and,  in- 
deed, the  capital  city  of  the  Montezumas  was  shown  to  be 
only  a  few  days' journey  overland  from  the  mouths'of  the 
Ganges.  It  was  not  until  Balboa  had  waded  into  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  had  thus  taken  possession  of 
the  newly-discovered  sea,  that  the  idea  of  a  new  world,  or 
new  continent,  having  been  discovered  began  to  enter  into 
the  minds  of  men.  The  belief  of  Marco  Polo,  who  looked 
out  over  the  ocean  eastward  from  China,  and  the  belief  of 
the  ambitious  Genoese  navigator,  who  looked  westward 
from  the  shores  of  Spain,  was  the  same,  and  it  was  shared 
by  every  body :  this  belief  being  that  the  Atlantic  Ocean 
extended  from  Asia  to  Europe ;  and  what  we  now  call 
America  was  nowhere  at  all  in  their  imaginations. 

D2 


82  THE  LANU   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE    LAST    MAN. 

THE  final  destruction  of  the  Northmen  in  Greenland  is 
a  matter  of  melancholy  interest.  Exactly  when  it  came 
about  we  can  not  know.  We  have  seen  that  the  bishop's 
see  was  abandoned  in  1409.  Prior  to  that  time,  however, 
we  have  accounts  of  the  desperate  straits  to  which  the 
people  were  reduced.  In  1383  we  find  the  following  cu- 
rious entry  in  the  Icelandic  annals  : 

"A  ship  came  from  Greenland  to  Norway  which  had 
lain  in  the  former  country  six  years,  and  certain  men  re- 
turned by  this  vessel  who  had  escaped  from  the  wreck  of 
Thorlast's  ship.  This  ship  brought  the  news  of  Bishop 
Alf's  death  from  Greenland,  which  had  taken  place  there 
six  years  before." 

Of  the  causes  which  led  to  this  state  of  affairs  we  are 
not,  however,  left  wholly  to  conjecture.  First  came  a 
royal  decree  (for  by  this  time  Greenland  had  passed  over, 
along  with  Iceland,  from  a  state  of  independence  into  the 
possession  of  the  King  of  Norway)  laying  a  prohibition  on 
the  foreign  trade,  and  creating  Greenland  a  monopoly  of 
the  crown.  This  was  a  dreadful  blow,  and  the  shipping 
was  practically  at  an  end.  Trade  must,  indeed,  have  been 
sadly  languishing  when  six  years  were  required  to  obtain 
a  return  cargo.  But  "  misfortunes  never  come  singly." 
In  1418  a  hostile  fleet  made  a  descent  upon  the  coast,  and, 
after  laying  waste  the  buildings,  carried  off  what  plunder 
and  as  many  captives  as  they  could.  With  respect  to  this 
latter  event,  and  the  generally  poor  condition  to  which 


THE  LAST  MAN.  83 

the  colonies  were  reduced,  we  find  the  following  appeal  of 
Pope  Nicholas  the  Fifth,  written  to  the  Bishop  of  Iceland 
in  the  year  1448  : 

"In  regard,"  says  the  pope's  letter,  "to  my  beloved 
children  born  in  and  inhabiting  the  island  of  Greenland, 
which  is  said  to  be  situated  at  the  farthest  limits  of  the 
great  ocean,  north  of  the  kingdom  of  Norway,  and  in  the 
Sea  of  Trondheim — their  pitiable  complaints  have  reached 
our  ears,  and  awakened  our  compassion ;  hearing  that  they 
have,  for  a  period  of  near  six  hundred  years,  maintained, 
in  firm  and  inviolate  subjection  to  the  authority  and  ordi- 
nances of  the  apostolic  chair,  the  Christian  faith  established 
among  them  by  the  preaching  of  their  renowned  teacher, 
King  Olaf,  and  have,  actuated  by  a  pious  zeal  for  the  in- 
terests of  religion,  erected  many  churches,  and,  among  oth- 
ers, a  cathedral,  in  that  island,  where  religious  service  was 
diligently  performed  -until  about  thirty  years  ago,  when 
some  heathen  foreigners  from  the  neighboring  coast  came 
against  them  with  a  fleet,  fell  upon  them  furiously,  laid 
waste  the  country  and  its  holy  buildings  with  fire  and 
sword,  sparing  nothing  throughout  the  whole  island  of 
Greenland  but  the  small  parishes  said  to  be^  situated  a  long 
way  oif,  and  which  they  were  prevented  from  reaching  by 
the  mountains  and  precipices  intervening,  and  carrying 
away  into  captivity  the  wretched  inhabitants  of  both  sexes, 
particularly  such  of  them  as  were  considered  to  be  strong 
of  body  and  able  to  endure  the  labors  of  perpetual  slavery." 

Furthermore,  the  letter  states  that  some  of  those  who 
were  carried  away  captive  have  returned,  but  that  the  or- 
ganization of  the  colonies  is  destroyed,  and  the  worship 
of  God  is  given  up  because  there  are  no  priests  or  bishops ; 
and  finally,  the  Bishop  of  Iceland  is  enjoined  to  send  to 
Greenland  "  some  fit  and  proper  person  for  their  bishop,  if 
the  distance  between  you  and  them  permit." 


84  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

But  the  distance  did  not  permit.  At  least,  there  is  no 
evidence  of  any  action  having  been  taken,  so  that  this  is 
the  last  we  know  of  ancient  Greenland,  and  from  that  time 
"  the  lost  colonies  "  passed  into  tradition. 

Who  the  raiders  were  who  thus  gave  rise  to  the  neces- 
sity which  existed  for  the  pope's  earnest  interference  we 
are  not  positively  informed,  but  about  this  time  the  sava- 
ges attacked  the  colonists,  as  we  know  from  the  sagas  of 
Ivar  Bere.  Previous  to  this,  however,  they  had  appeared 
upon  the  coast.  This  was  about  the  middle  of  the  four- 
teenth century. 

In  a  former  chapter  I  have  alluded  to  the  progress  of 
the  Northmen  up  the  Greenland  coast,  and  have  mention- 
ed their  occupation  of  an  island  near  Upernavik.  But  no 
important  settlements  were  effected  farther  in  that  direc- 
tion than  those  which  were  founded  upon  the  banks  of 
what  is  now  Baal's  River,  where  stands  the  modern  colony 
of  Godthaab — a  deep  fiord,  alike  in  character  with  that  of 
Ericsfiord.  Here  there  was  a  considerable  population,  the 
colonies  being  distinguished  by  the  name  of  West  Buygd ; 
while  those  about  Ericsfiord  and  to  the  south,  towards 
Cape  Farewell,  were  called  the  East  Buygd,  meaning  the 
western  and  eastern  inhabited  places. 

In  the  year  1349  intelligence  was  brought  to  Ericsfiord 
from  the  West  Buygd  that  a  descent  had  been  made  upon 
them  by  the  Skraellings.  An  expedition  was  immediately 
fitted  out  for  their  defense  and  succor,  and  was  placed  in 
charge  of  Ivar  Bere  (the  same  who  left  a  written  account 
of  his  Greenland  experiences),  who  was  secretary  to  the 
bishop,  and  lay  superintendent  of  Gardar.  He  found, 
however,  on  arriving  there,  not  a  human  being  left,  but 
merely  a  few  cattle,  which  he  brought  away  with  him. 
Nor  did  he  discover  any  enemies.  Having  accomplished 
their  murderous  and  plundering  design,  the  savages  had 


THE  LAST  MAN.  85 

retreated  with  the  fruits  of  their  raid,  and  for  a  time  were 
not  again  heard  from.  But  at  length  they  learned  of  the 
still  greater  wealth  of  the  white  men  lower  down  the 
coast,  and  there  they  began  to  show  themselves — at  first 
in  small  bands,  but  finally  in  great  numbers,  until  they 
overran  the  habitable  parts  of  the  country ;  and,  driving 
the  Northmen  from  place  to  place,  at  length  wiped  them 
out  as  completely  here  as  they  had  formerly  done  in  the 
West  Buygd.  The  churches  were  pillaged  and  burned, 
and  the  monasteries  of  St.  Olaf,  St.  Michael,  and  St.  Thom- 
as were  levelled  with  the  earth. 

A  peculiar  interest  attaches  to  the  church  at  Krakortok 
from  the  circumstance  that  here  the  Northmen  made  their 
last  stand,  and,  under  the  leadership  of  a  man  named  Un- 
gitok,  for  some  years  maintained  an  obstinate  and  success- 
ful resistance.  At  this  time  great  numbers  of  the  sava- 
ges were  collected  upon  the  island  of  Aukpeitsavik  (about 
midway  between  Krakortok  and  Julianashaab),  under  the 
lead  of  their  chief,  Krassippe. 

These  savages,  or  Skraellings,  were  the  Esquimaux  of 
the  present  time.  Originally  they  appear  to  have  been 
warlike  and  aggressive.  At  present  they  are  an  inoffen- 
sive, harmless  people — a  change  entirely  due  to  the  influ- 
ence of  the  Danish  missionaries  and  the  Moravian  Breth- 
ren, who  have  been  among  them  during  the  past  hundred 
and  fifty  years. 

Whence  they  came,  we  can  of  course  only  conjecture, 
since  they  had  formerly  no  written  language  of  any  kind, 
and  possessed  only  vague  traditions  of  having  come  from 
the  West.  That  they  crossed  from  Asia  by  Behring's 
Straits,  and  then  wandered  eastward  along  the  coasts  of 
Arctic  America,  until,  in  course  of  time,  they  reached 
Greenland,  there  can  be  no  reasonable  doubt.  Of  the  pe- 
riod of  their  original  migration  we  can  not,  of  course,  have 


86  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

ground  for  even  a  rational  speculation.  This  is,  how- 
ever, wholly  unimportant  to  our  present  purpose,  which 
concerns  only  their  appearance  in  Greenland — an  event 
which,  as  we  have  seen,  happened  in  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury. Could  it  be  that  these  same  savages  were  identical 
with  those  of  similar  character  which  Lief  and  his  succes- 
sors, three  centuries  before,  had  found  on  the  shores  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, and  who  were  there  in  sufficient  numbers  to 
prevent  the  Northmen  from  occupying  the  country  ?  I 
think  it  very  probable ;  and  their  appearance  in  Greenland 
is,  perhaps,  due  to  the  fact  that  the  tribes  now  known  as 
Indians  (who  first  appeared  upon  the  eastern  slope  of  the 
Alleghanies  about  that  time)  drove  them  from  their  south- 
ern hunting-grounds,  and  forced  them  to  seek  safety  in 
the  inhospitable  North,  compelling  them  to  reside  upon 
the  sea-shore,  because  the  land  produced  but  little  game, 
while  the  sea  everywhere  abounded  in  fish.  Hence  their 
name,  derived  from  the  Indian  word  Esquimatlik^  applied 
to  them  in  derision,  and  signifying  "  eaters  of  fish." 

In  what  manner  they  crossed  Baffin's  Bay  is  left  in 
doubt.  It  would  not  have  been  impossible  for  them  to 
do  so  in  their  skin  boats.  Possibly,  however,  they  went 
higher  up,  and  crossed  over  on  the  ice  of  Smith's  Sound. 
Some  tribes  still  exist  in  that  neighborhood ;  and  to  show 
their  insatiable  love  of  wandering,  I  may  mention  that  I 
have  found  evidences  of  their  presence  upon  the  shores  of 
Grinnell's  Land  as  far  north  as  latitude  81°.  It  has  been 
conjectured  that  they  came  over  in  fleets  of  boats,  crossing 
the  narrowest  part  of  Davis's  Strait,  which  is  less  than  two 
hundred  miles  wide,  from  land  to  land.  It  may  be  that 
they  were  not  less  influenced  by  a  motive  of  revenge  for 
the  wrongs  of  their  ancestors  than  fleeing  from  the  In- 
dians who  possessed  their  lands,  for  they  had  been  sadly 
ill-used  in  Massachusetts  by  the  Northmen  wThen  they 


THE  LAST  MAN.  87 

first  came  there.  These  Northmen  had  killed  and  tor- 
tured a  great  many  of  them  in  very  wantonness,  before 
actual  hostilities  began.  There  might  seem  to  be,  there- 
fore, in  the  destruction  of  the  Northmen  by  these  Skrael- 
lings  something  of  retributive  justice. 

This  destruction  went  on,  as  we  have  seen,  until  the 
remnant  of  the  race  was  brought  to  bay  and  driven  to 
defend  themselves  at  Krakortok.  But  they  could  neither 
be  dislodged  nor  completely  destroyed  until  stratagem 
was  brought  to  bear;  and  the  device  to  which  these  sava- 
ges resorted  in  order  to  accomplish  their  purpose  deserves 
to  rank  with  the  famous  wooden  horse  of  Troy. 

This  did  not,  however,  happen  until  after  a  most  despe- 
rate attempt  had  been  made  by  Ungitok  to  get  free  from 
the  clutches  of  his  brutal  adversaries.  He  managed,  with 
a  large  party  of  his  followers,  to  get  over  to  the  island, 
and  in  the  dead  of  night  he  surprised  them  in  their  huts, 
and,  with  the  loss  of  only  one  man,  destroyed  the  entire 
party,  putting  men,  women,  and  children  to  the  sword. 
It  was  a  fearful  massacre,  and  a  dreadful  revenge ;  but  it 
only  further  imbittered  the  savages  against  the  whites, 
and  caused  them  to  redouble  their  efforts.  One  man  es- 
caped the  general  slaughter,  and  carried  with  him  the 
memory  of  their  burning  huts  and  bleeding  wives  and 
children.  Two  there  were  at  first,  and,  unhappily  for  the 
whites,  one  of  those  men  was  the  chief,  Krassippe ;  while 
the  second  was  his  brother.  These  Ungitok  pursued  upon 
the  ice  (the  attack  was  made  in  winter),  with  several  men 
following  after;  but  Ungitok  outstripped  them  all,  and, 
overtaking  the  brother,  ran  him  through  the  body,  and 
then  cutting  off  the  right  arm  of  his  fallen  enemy  he  bran- 
dished it  in  the  air,  shouting  at  the  same  time  to  Kras- 
sippe (who  by  this  time  had  reached  the  shore),  intimating 
to  him,  in  an  obliging  manner,  that  if  he  ever  wanted 


88  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

an  arm  he  would  know  where  to  come  for  it.  Krassippe 
was  now  beyond  pursuit,  so  Ungitok  returned,  well  pleased 
with  the  trophy  he  had  cut  from  his  victim. 

After  this  Krassippe  neither  rested  by  night  nor  day 
until  he  had  compassed  the  destruction  of  Ungitok  and 
his  band.  In  a  fair  fight  every  Northman  was  good  for 
at  least  half  a  dozen  savages,  and,  notwithstanding  the 
destruction  they  had  spread  elsewhere,  the  people  of  Kra- 
kortok  held  them  personally  in  the  greatest  contempt. 
But  Krassippe  was  nevertheless,  by  numbers  and  strategy, 
to  get  the  best  of  them  at  last.  He  constructed  an  im- 
mense raft  of  boats,  over  which  he  erected  a  low  and 
irregular  scaffolding.  This  he  covered  with  tanned  and 
bleached  seal-skins,  so  that  when  afloat  the  structure 
looked  like  an  iceberg.  This  he  filled  with  armed  men, 
and  turned  it  adrift  upon  the  fiord,  allowing  it  to  float 
down  with  the  tide  towards  Krakortok  among  some  pieces 
of  ice.  When  it  floated  too  fast,  the  people  threw  over- 
board stones,  with  lines  attached  to  them.  These,  by  re- 
tarding the  progress  of  the  raft,  enabled  them  to  keep  in 
company  with  the  icebergs.  Ungitok  and  his  people  saw 
the  raft ;  but  so  much  did  it  appear  like  the  ice  alongside 
of  it,  that  they  never  once  suspected  its  character,  and  the 
armed  men  drifted  around  into  a  bight  almost  at  the  rear 
of  the  town.  Running  the  raft  ashore,  they  then  rushed 
up  and  made  for  the  church  by  an  unfrequented  route, 
which  was  left  unguarded,  except  close  to  the  town.  The 
sentinel  was  killed,  and  the  church  was  surrounded  before 
a  single  person  escaped  from  it.  Then  it  was  fired,  and 
all  who  were  not  burned  or  smothered  with  smoke  met 
death,  as  they  rushed  out,  on  the  points  of  their  enemies' 
spears.  Not  a  soul  escaped  except  Ungitok  and  his  son, 
who  was  but  a  small  boy.  With  him  Ungitok  fled  to  the 
mountains,  and  there  hid  for  a  time  in  a  cave,  where  at 


THE  LAST  MAN.  89 

length  he  was  discovered  through  the  indefatigable  exer- 
tions of  Krassippe.  The  hiding  chieftain  was  surrounded, 
and,  discovering  that  his  case  was  hopeless,  he  threw  his 
son  into  the  lake  to  prevent  his  falling  into  the  hands  of 
the  savages,  who  would  he  sure  to  torture  him,  and  then 
prepared  to  sell  his  life  as  dearly  as  possible.  In  the  end 
he  was  overpowered  and  borne  down.  While  yet  sensible, 
Krassippe  completed  his  revenge  by  cutting  off  his  right 
arm,  and,  flourishing  it  before  the  expiring  chieftain,  he 
exclaimed,  "  Thou  didst  tell  me  where  to  come  for  an  arm 
if  I  should  want  one.  I  have  come  for  it." 

Thus  perished  the  last  man  of  his  race ;  and  since  that 
day  the  Esquimaux,  whom  their  defeated  rivals  had  so 
contemptuously  called  Skraellings,  have  held  possession  of 
the  country  undisturbed.  They  have,  however,  very  evi- 
dently decreased  in  numbers,  and  where  there  were  once 
tens  of  thousands,  there  are  only  thousands  now.  For 
a  long  period  of  time  they  remained  the  sole  occupants 
of  the  country,  and  nothing  was  known  of  them  save 
vague  and  exaggerated  accounts  brought  by  occasional 
ships — such  as  those  of  Davis,  Baffin,  and  Frobisher,  who 
touched  at  Greenland  on  their  way  to  the  discovery  of  a 
north-west  passage.  In  later  times,  however,  the  Danish 
Government  (to  which  Greenland  as  well  as  Iceland  had 
become  subject)  made  numerous  efforts  to  recover  the 
"  lost  colonies,"  with  the  hope  of  sustaining  the  trade  and 
fisheries.  Admiral  Lindenau  reached  the  coast  in  1605, 
and  carried  off  some  of  the  savages.  Afterwards  Captain 
Hall,  an  Englishman  in  the  employ  of  Denmark,  took  away 
four  others,  and  shot  what  more  he  could,  as  if  by  way 
of  amusement.  Another,  who  was  not  veised  in  ocean 
currents,  did  not  get  near  the  land  at  all ;  but,  becoming 
frightened  at  being  able  to  make  no  progress,  he  declared 
that  there  was  a  huge  magnet  in  the  sea  holding  his 


90  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

ship,  which  so  alarmed  him  that  he  returned  home.  About 
half  a  dozen  enterprises  followed,  the  last  in  1670,  with- 
out any  further  result  than  the  killing  of  a  few  more  of  the 
savages.  Then  the  "  lost  colonies "  were  given  up  alto- 
gether, until  that  excellent  missionary,  Hans  Egede,  went 
there  in  1721,  and  established  himself  in  Baal's  River,  near 
where  the  West  Buygd  had  flourished.  Here  he  founded 
the  colony  of  Godthaab.  Then  came  the  Moravians ;  and 
from  that  time  to  the  present  the  re-establishment  of  col- 
onies, and  the  civilizing  and  Christianizing  of  the  natives, 
has  gone  steadily  on.  But  nowhere  did  Egede  or  his  fol- 
lowers find  any  traces  of  the  race  that  had  dwelt  there  in 
ancient  times,  save  those  evidences  of  their  decay  which  I 
have  described.  Egede  travelled  very  extensively;  and 
others  coming  after  him  have  described  all  we  shall  proba- 
bly ever  know  of  this  Land  of  Desolation  as  it  was  in  the 
days  of  Red  Eric.  Among  the  most  important  discoveries 
were  those  of  Captain  Graah,  of  the  Danish  navy,  who  vis- 
ited both  coasts  in  oomiaks  during  the  years  between  1828 
and  1832  ;  and  after  him  Dr.  Henry  Rink. 

I  will  close  this  historical  account  of  Greenland  with  a 
paragraph  from  the  Dublin  ^Review  of  twenty  years  ago, 
which  has  not  less  interest  at  the  present  time  than  then. 
"  Few  people,"  observes  the  .Review,  "  imagine  the  extent 
of  these  ancient  Greenland  colonies.  At  best,  it  seems 
to  most  persons  some  sort  of  Arctic  fable,  and  they  are 
hardly  prepared  to  learn  that  of  this  Greenland  nation  con- 
temporary records,  histories,  papal  briefs,  and  grants  of 
land  yet  exist.  So  complete  was  the  destruction  of  the 
colonies,  and  so  absolutely  were  they  lost  to  the  rest  of 
the  world,  that  for  centuries  Europe  was  in  doubt  respect- 
ing their  fate,  and,  up  to  a  very  recent  period,  was  igno- 
rant of  their  geographical  position.  To  the  Catholic  they 
must  be  doubly  interesting  when  he  learns  that  here,  as  in 


THE  LAST  MAN.  91 

his  own  land,  the  traces  of  his  faith — of  that  faith  which 
is  everywhere  the  same — are  yet  distinctly  to  be  found; 
that  the  sacred  temples  of  his  worship  may  still  be  identi- 
fied ;  nay,  that  in  at  least  one  instance  the  church  itself, 
with  its  burial-ground,  its  aumbries,  its  holy-water  stoup, 
and  its  tomb-stones,  bearing  the  sacred  emblems  of  the 
Catholic  belief,  and  the  pious  petitions  for  the  prayers  of 
the  surviving  faithful,  still  remain  to  attest  that  here  once 
dwelt  a  people  who  were  our  brethren  in  the  Church  of 
God.  It  was  not,  as  in  our  own  land,  that  these  churches, 
these  fair  establishments  of  the  true  faith,  were  ruined  by 
the  lust  and  avarice  of  a  tyrant.  No  change  of  religion 
marked  the  history  of  the  Church  of  Greenland ;  the  col- 
onies had  been  lost  before  the  fearful  religious  calamities 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  How  or  when  they  were  swept 
away  we  scarcely  know,  save  from  a  few  scattered  no- 
tices, and  from  the  traditions  of  wandering  Esquimaux — a 
heathen  people  that  burst  in  upon  the  old  colonists  of 
Greenland,  and  laid  desolate  their  sanctuaries  and  their 
homes,  *  till  not  one  man  was  left  alive.' " 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  XL 

A  DISCONSOLATE  LOVER. 

To  resume  the  thread  of  our  narrative.  Taking  it  up 
where  it  was  dropped  some  chapters  back,  I  must  first 
recall  the  day  and  the  situation. 

Our  lunch  was  spread  under  the  ample  shelter  of  a  tent, 
which  screened  us  from  the  rays  of  the  sun,  and  formed 
a  no  bad  substitute  for  the  protecting  trees  under  which 
our  picnics  are  enjoyed  in  other  lands.  There  seemed  to 
be  but  one  drawback  to  complete  enjoyment.  The  noon- 
day heat  rose  above  70°,  and  started  great  quantities  of 
small  flies  and  musquitoes.  From  these  pestiferous  in- 
sects we  thought  we  surely  had  escaped  when  we  came  to 
Greenland.  But  no !  this  was  not  to  be.  They  attacked 
us  in  perfect  clouds  during  the  afternoon,  and  before  I  had 
quite  completed  my  survey  most  of  the  party  had  betaken 
themselves  to  the  oomiak,  and  hauled  out  into  the  middle 
of  the  fiord  to  escape  their  assaults.  But  the  day  was 
then  well  spent,  and  the  pleasure-seekers  had  by  this 
time  enough  of  sport  to  satisfy  them.  All  had  enjoyed 
the  day,  Marcus  alone  excepted.  That  youth  could  never 
restrain  his  mortification  at  the  havoc  he  at  heart  believed 
the  Prince  was  making  with  his  matrimonial  prospects. 
For  that  young  gentleman  persistently  devoted  himself  to 
the  lively  Concordia,  despite  the  heat  and  musquitoes, 
while  she,  in  grateful  appreciation  of  his  attentions,  wove 
wreaths  of  wild  flowers  for  his  cap,  sung  for  him  in  irre- 
proachable Esquimaux,  and  performed  other  coquettish 
acts  of  that  kind  with  which  recognized  lovers  are  not 
unfrequently  tantalized  in  other  places  than  Greenland. 


DISCONSOLATE  LOVER. 


Whether  Marcus  would  sensibly  have  staid  at  home, 
had  he  not  been  ordered  to  go  by  the  pastor,  I  can  not 
pretend  to  say  ;  but  having  gone,  he  was  certainly  deserv- 


OOMOOBDIA   AT   THE   PICNIC. 


ing  (or  at  least  he  evidently  thought  so,  like  any  other 
lover  would  have  done)  of  better  treatment  from  his  in- 
amorata ;  and,  to  look  at  him,  you  would  have  thought 


94  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

so  too,  for  he  was  really  a  fine-looking  fellow — at  least  for 
a  half-breed.  The  stolid  mask  of  the  Esquimaux  did  not 
suit  his  frank,  open  face  at  all,  and  it  was  quite  impossible 
for  him  to  show  himself  at  ease  when  he  was  not.  Wheth- 
er the  Prince  discovered  the  disturbed  state  of  his  feelings 
is  not  certain,  but  it  is  certain  that  he  did  not  treat  the 
matter  with  much  attention.  He  never  allowed  Marcus 
to  approach  the  object  of  his  devotion  to  speak  with  her 
except  once,  and  then  Marcus  was  overheard  to  reproach 
her  with  flirting  with  the  American — an  opinion  which 
was  very  generally  entertained.  The  lively  young  lady 
of  the  seal-skin  pantaloons  grew  indignant,  declaring  very 
pointedly  that  it  was  none  of  his  business  what  she  did 
with  the  American.  Quite  taken  aback,  the  young  man 
began  to  remonstrate  with  her,  evidently  under  the  im- 
pression that  the  Prince  had  already  installed  himself 
deep  in  the  affections  which,  until  this  most  unhappy  day, 
he  thought  he  had  possessed  all  to  himself.  Then  he  be- 
gan to  institute  comparisons  between  himself  and  the 
Prince.  "Look  at  him,"  exclaimed  the  much-injured  lov- 
er, "  with  his  pockets  full  of  beads  and  jewelry  !  Look  at 
him  there,  with  his  pop-gun  of  a  rifle !  Do  you  imagine 
he  could  shoot  a  seal  ?  No,  never !  And  if  he  did,  could  he 
get  it  home  ?  No !  Can  he  go  in  the  fleet  kayak  ?  Can 
he  climb  the  cliffs  of  the  kittiwake,  or  gather  the  eggs  of 
the  lumme?  Can  he  dart  the  spear  at  the  eider-duck? 
Can  he  scale  the  mountain-sides  in  pursuit  of  the  rein- 
deer ?  Look  at  his  pale  face,  and  answer  me  !"  and  by 
this  time  fairly  boiling  over  with  rage  and  vexation  as 
he  recounted  the  Prince's  negative  qualifications,  he  ex- 
claimed, "  No !  he  can  do  none  of  these  things.  He  is 
good  for  nothing !"  Then  he  straightened  himself  and 
said,  with  great  self-complacency,  "Look  at  me  !" 

"  I  don't  want  to,"  said  the  girl ;  "  I  won't !"  which  ter- 


A  DISCONSOLATE  LOVER.  95 

minated  the  colloquy,  for  the  Prince  himself  came  up  at 
that  very  moment,  and,  addressing  himself  to  the  indig- 
nant lover,  desired  to  know  if  his  mother  was  intimately 
acquainted  with  his  whereabouts — an  inquiry  which  might 
have  resulted  in  serious  consequences  had  the  lover  under- 
stood even  so  much  as  a  word  of  it.  Without  wasting 
much  time,  however,  upon  the  injured  youth,  the  Prince 
called  for  the  music  (the  boy  who  steered  our  oomiak  had 
brought  up  a  cracked  fiddle),  and  then,  seizing  Concordia 
by  the  waist,  he  whirled  her  through  the  old  Norseman's 
grave-yard  in  a  fantastic  waltz  that  must  have  made  the 
very  bones  of  the  dead  heroes  fairly  rattle  again.  Could 
those  ancient  priests,  with  the  bishops  at  their  head,  have 
arisen  then  and  there,  they  would  doubtless  have  anathe- 
matized the  whole  party  on  the  spot ;  for  others  were  not 
slow  to  follow,  and  the  dance  did  not  wind  up  until  they 
had  gone  through  with  several  hornpipes  and  Greenland 
reels  of  a  kind,  I  dare  avow,  never  dreamed  of  by  Terpsich- 
ore. Meanwhile  Marcus,  leaning  against  the  old  church 
wall,  looked  on  in  a  most  disconsolate  and  defiant  man- 
ner, with  his  fists  thrust  far  down  into  his  pockets,  as  if 
that  were  the  only  safe  place  for  them. 

Whatever  may  have  been  Marcus's  recollections  of  the 
day,  certainly  all  the  rest  of  the  party  had  a  thoroughly 
good  time  of  it.  The  day,  however,  lost  something  of  its 
romantic  character  when  the  shades  of  evening  began  to 
trail  over  us,  and  the  sun  going  down  behind  the  distant 
glacier-crowned  hills  left  the  chilliness  of  evening  to  suc- 
ceed the  warmth  of  noon,  as  fatigue  succeeded  to  the  fresh- 
ness of  the  morning. 

When,  therefore,  we  had  completed  our  survey  of  the 
spot,  we  were  a  much  more  orderly  party  than  we  had 
been  previously ;  and,  when  once  more  afloat  in  our  oomiak, 
we  went  about  from  place  to  place  in  the  fiord,  visiting 


96  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

other  ruins,  with  a  solemnity  more  befitting  explorers. 
The  jealous  Marcus  had  not  now  so  much  cause  of  com- 
plaint against  the  Prince,  yet  he  did  not  recover  his  liveli- 
ness of  disposition.  He  paddled  along  at  his  post  of  duty, 
looking  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the  left,  saying  never  a 
word,  but  evidently  thinking  very  hard. 

As  he  appeared  to  be  of  a  very  simple  and  gentle 
nature,  I  could  but  sympathize  with  him  in  his  present 
trouble.  There  could  be  no  doubt  that  he  looked  upon 
his  hopes  of  happiness  as  forever  gone.  He  had  discov- 
ered his  lady-love  to  be  mercenary  —  her  mind  carried 
away  by  the  Prince's  lavish  expenditure  of  beads,  ribbons, 
and  jewelry ;  and  all  this  for  a  young  foreigner  with  a  fair 
face,  who  could  neither  shoot  a  seal,  nor  go  in  a  kayak, 
nor  cast  a  spear !  It  was  altogether  most  unaccountable. 
He  seemed  to  be  all  the  time,  and  naturally  enough,  com- 
paring himself  with  his  rival,  to  the  great  disparagement, 
of  course,  of  the  said  rival,  else  he  would  not  have  been  a 
lover,  and  with  great  wonderment  as  to  what  she  possibly 
could  see  to  admire  in  the  other  man.  That  Concordia 
meant  to  run  off  to  America,  Marcus  evidently  did  not 
have  a  doubt,  and  his  face  seemed  to  indicate  at  times 
that  he  was  capable  of  any  deed  of  desperation  in  order 
to  prevent  so  dire  a  catastrophe.  Should  he  spear  him, 
or  put  a  bullet  through  him,  or  any  thing  of  that  sort  ? 
Especially  did  his  countenance  assume  a  malignant  ex- 
pression when,  upon  the  homeward  journey,  the  coquette 
would  break  out  with  her  favorite  song,  the  chorus  of 
which  was,  "  Tesseinowah,  tesseinowah,"  repeated  over 
and  over  again.  At  this  the  Prince  always  manifested 
great  delight,  while  Marcus  grew  correspondingly  gloomy. 

When  we  had  at  length  reached  Julianashaab,  and  had 
thanked  the  good  pastor,  to  whom  we  were  so  much  in- 
debted, and  had  said  "  good-night "  to  our  oarswomen,  I 


A  DISCONSOLATE  LOVER.  97 

took  the  unhappy  Marcus  aside  to  condole  with  him. 
"  Are  you  not,"  said  I,  "  son  of  the  head  man  of  Bun- 
getak?" 

"  Ab,"  said  Marcus,  and  I  thought  a  glow  of  satisfaction 
overspread  his  features  at  being  reminded  of  his  superior 
parentage. 

"  Concordia  is  very  pretty,"  I  continued. 

"  Ab  !"  said  Marcus  again,  his  countenance  falling  at  the 
recollection  of  his  previous  hopes  and  present  discomfiture. 

I  asked  him,  "  Do  you  know  what  pretty  girls  do  in  my 
country  ?" 

"Na-mik"  (no),  he  answered,  his  countenance  falling 
still  more  at  the  further  mention  of  the  pretty  girl  that  he 
had  lost. 

"  When  the  pretty  girl  has  the  chance,  she  always  mar- 
ries the  son  of  the  head  man,"  said  I. 

Then  his  countenance  assumed  a  joyous  expression,  and 
he  went  his  way  with  a  smile,  which  said  plainly  that,  if 
he  thought  it  was  not  much  to  be  Marcus,  it  was  good  to 
be  the  son  of  the  head  man  of  Bungetak. 

E 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

THE  CHURCH  AT  JULIANASHAAB. 

THE  day  following  our  return  from  Krakortok  being 
Sunday,  I  gladly  availed  myself  of  Mr.  Anthon's  invitation 
to  attend  service  at  his  little  church. 

Julian  ash  aab  is  not  at  any  time  a  particularly  lively 
place,  but  there  is  sufficient  activity  during  six  days  of 
the  week  to  make  the  silence  of  the  seventh  very  marked. 
Solemnly  silent  it  was  to  me,  as  I  landed  on  the  beach, 
and  then,  beside  the  stream  which  flows  through  the  town, 
made  my  way  towards  the  temple  dedicated  to  God  among 
the  majestic  hills.  The  people,  savage  and  civilized  alike, 
had  rested  from  their  labors — the  fishermen  from  their 
lines  and  nets ;  the  hunters  from  their  search  after  game 
in  the  valleys  ;  the  sound  of  the  cooper's  hammer,  and  the 
ring  of  the  blacksmith's  anvil  were  no  longer  heard ;  even 
the  voices  of  the  inhabitants  seemed  to  be  hushed,  as  if 
awed  by  the  presence  of  that  divinely  ordained  day  which, 
it  is  commanded,  shall  be  remembered  and  kept  holy. 

It  was  delightfully  calm  ;  the  sun  gave  a  pleasant  au- 
tumnal warmth  to  the  atmosphere  ;  and  altogether  it  was 
one  of  those  peaceful  Sunday  mornings  which  one  enjoys 
so  much  at  home  in  the  country,  when  the  mind  instinct- 
ively dwells  upon  the  wonders  of  nature,  and  the  very 
soul  goes  out  to  the  great  universal  Father  whose  dwell- 
ing-place is  everywhere,  and  whose  presence  is  nowhere 
felt  more  strongly  than  amidst  the  solemn  grandeur  of  the 
cloud-piercing  hills. 

As  I  approached  the  church,  the  only  sounds  that  greet- 


THE  CHURCH  AT  JULIANASHAAB.  99 

ed  me  were  those  made  by  the  tumbling  waters  of  the 
brook  until  I  came  very  near,  when  the  sweet  music  of  an 
organ  rose  above  the  voice  of  the  glad  stream.  It  was  a 
most  agreeable  surprise ;  for  I  had  hardly  expected  to  find 
here  in  Greenland  any  such  artificial  means  of  inspiring 
religious  feeling.  How  far  this  circumstance  may  have 
had  an  influence  with  me  I  can  not  say  ;  but  certain  it  is,  I 
would  not  exchange  the  memory  of  the  notes  of  that  little 
organ  of  the  small  Julianashaab  church,  as  I  first  caught 
them  there  on  that  peaceful  Sunday  morning  in  that 
Greenland  dell,  for  those  of  any  other  church-organ  that  I 
ever  heard.  Afterwards,  when  I  had  taken  my  seat  among 
the  congregation,  the  effect  was  not  the  less  pleasing  as  I 
listened  to  the  voices  of  the  choir,  and  reflected  that  they 
were  the  voices  of  God's  children,  who,  through  the  instru- 
mentality of  Christian  love,  had  been  reclaimed  from  bar- 
barism. 

As  sometimes  happens  elsewhere,  a  large  majority  of 
the  worshippers  were  women.  They  generally  appeared 
to  be  inspired  with  a  devout  feeling,  which  even  the  pres- 
ence of  strangers  could  not  disturb,  and  they  sang  the 
hymns  in  a  manner  peculiarly  agreeable. 

The  Esquimaux  language  is  by  no  means  lacking  in  eu- 
phonious sounds,  and,  as  pronounced  by  a  native,  is  often 
music  itself.  Mr.  Anthon  had  caught  the  accent  and  pro- 
nunciation perfectly,  and  the  entire  service,  sermon  in- 
cluded, was  in  the  common  tongue — a  language  peculiar 
to  the  Esquimaux,  and  the  same  with  all  the  tribes. 

The  organ  of  the  little  church  is  of  the  quaint  device  of 
a  hundred  years  ago,  having  been  presented  to  the  mission 
by  Queen  Juliana,  in  recognition  of  the  compliment  paid 
her  by  the  naming  of  the  town.  A  native  played  it  with 
reasonable  skill,  and  the  catechist  led  the  singing,  in  which 
the  entire  congregation  joined  with  a  good  voice. 


100  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

I  have  never  seen  a  congregation  pay  closer  attention 
to  their  pastor  than  these  rude  people  paid  to  Mr.  Anthon. 
They  seemed  eager  for  instruction,  and  drank  in  his  every 
word.  The  sermon  was  well  adapted  to  the  minds  of  a 
people  exposed  to  the  dangers  of  the  sea,  as  they  are  con- 
tinually. As  I  sat  looking  at  their  upturned  faces,  I  could 
not  but  reflect  upon  the  great  change  that  had  come 
over  the  people  who  subdued  the  Northmen.  Then  they 
were  steeped  in  the  worst  form  of  barbarous  superstition. 
Earth,  sea,  and  air  were  peopled  with  horrid  spirits  ;  now 
the  love  of  Christ  rules  in  every  heart,  and  they  are  all, 
without  exception,  converts  to  the  Christian  faith. 

As  a  specimen  of  their  language,  I  quote  a  stanza  from 
one  of  the  hymns  sung  (with  a  literal  translation  append- 
ed), which  no  doubt  my  readers  will  find  no  difficulty  in 
singing  for  themselves. 

Aut  nellekangitsok,  That  blood,  that  inestimable, 

Pirsaunekangarpok,  Hath  a  very  great  power ; 

Kuttingub  attausingut,  A  single  drop, 

Innuit  nunametut,  The  men  that  are  upon  earth, 

Annau-sinna-kullugit  That  it  has  power  to  redeem  them 

Kringarsairsub  karnanit.  From  the  cruel  hater's  jaws. 

Another,  which  was  an  exhortation  to  all  men  to  come  to 
Jesus, began  thus: 

' '  Krikiektorsimarsok 
Jesuse  innulerkipok." 

The  services  ended,  I  went  with  Mr.  Anthon  to  the  par- 
sonage, and  passed  the  greater  part  of  the  day  with  his 
agreeable  family.  The  pastor  himself  has  devoted  much 
attention  to  gathering  the  traditions  and  legends  of  the 
people,  and  in  his  recital  of  them  I  found  much  entertain- 
ment. 


A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  101 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT. 

THE  condition  of  the  Esquimaux  has  not  only  improved 
spiritually  since  they  arrived  in  Greenland,  but  they  have 
improved  in  their  temporal  affairs  as  well.  Formerly  they 
led  a  purely  nomadic  life,  and  dressed  solely  in  the  skins 
of  wild  beasts ;  now  they  live  in  permanent  communities, 
and  have  adopted  the  habits  and,  in  some  measure,  the 
costume  of  civilized  men.  Unlike  many  savage  peoples, 
the  introduction  of  the  forms  of  civilization  among  them 
has  not  been  attended  with  any  corresponding  mischief; 
a  circumstance  due,  in  a  great  measure,  if  not  wholly,  to 
the  paternal  care  of  the  Danish  Government,  aided  by  the 
missionaries.  That  care,  beginning  with  the  missionary, 
Hans  Egede,  has  been  continued  with  much  skill  by  his 
successors,  and  by  none  more  conspicuously  than  Dr.  H.  J. 
Rink,  who  has  passed  a  considerable  portion  of  his  life  in 
the  country,  and  was,  until  lately,  Royal  Inspector  for  the 
Southern  Districts. 

The  principal  feature  of  Dr.  Rink's  administration  is  the 
Parliament  of  natives ;  and  in  the  establishment  of  this 
arrangement  Dr.  Rink  has  earned  as  much  credit  for  skill- 
ed benevolence  as  he  had  before  acquired  for  scientific  ex- 
plorations ;  and  his  efforts  are  entitled  to  the  highest  enco- 
miums. 

The  civil  organization  of  Greenland  is  very  simple.  The 
six  northern  districts  constitute  the  Northern  Inspector- 
ate, the  inspector's  residence  being  at  Godhavn ;  the  six 
southern  constitute  the  Southern  Inspectorate,  with  the 
inspector's  residence  at  Godthaab.  Each  inspector's  au- 


102  THE  LAX1J    OF  DESOLATION. 

thority  is  absolute  throughout  his  jurisdiction,  and  there 
is  no  appeal,  except  to  the  home  government,  against  his 
decisions  and  decrees;  but  each  district  within  the  In- 
spectorate has  certain  privileges  of  its  own,  granted  by  the 
royal  will.  These  privileges  are  exercised  by  the  Parlia- 
ment, which  is  based  upon  the  principle  that  every  native 
is  a  subject  of  Denmark,  and  amenable  to  Danish  law. 
Happily,  in  the  administration  of  that  law  the  people 
themselves  are  not  denied  a  voice. 

The  idea  of  a  Greenland  Parliament  struck  me  as  some- 
thing ludicrous  when  I  first  heard  of  it ;  but  upon  gaining 
an  intimate  acquaintance  with  its  workings,  I  changed  my 
mind,  and  became  convinced  that  if  all  Parliaments  did 
their  work  only  half  as  well,  the  world  would  be  better 
governed. 

The  population  of  Greenland  at  the  present  time  equals 
about  7000  souls — an  average  to  each  of  the  twelve  dis- 
tricts of  near  600.  In  the  district  of  Julianashaab  there 
are  about  800  people,  distributed,  along  the  line  of  its  ex- 
tended coast  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles,  in  a  number  of 
small  settlements,  all  pitched  either  upon  the  shore  of  the 
main-land  or  some  outlying  island  (it  must  be  borne  in 
mind  that  the  interior  is  nowhere  inhabitable),  at  some 
point  where  there  is  a  convenient  harbor.  These  are  all 
outposts  of  the  capital  town  of  Julianashaab,  and  their  af- 
fairs are  regulated  according  to  orders  received  from  the 
governor,  or  bestyrere,  of  Julianashaab.  Each  one  is  pre- 
sided over  by  a  Dane  or  half-breed,  whose  principal  busi- 
ness is  to  keep  the  Company's  accounts,  dispose  of  the 
Company's  stores,  and  to  gather  products  for  the  Com- 
pany's profit.  The  stores  are  brought  annually  by  ship 
to  Julianashaab,  and  thence  they  are  distributed  to  the 
various  outposts,  and,  in  like  manner,  the  products  are 
gathered  at  Julianashaab  by  the  time  the  ship  arrives. 


A   GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  103 

These  products  consist  of  stock  fish  (the  cod,  dried  with- 
out salt),  eider-down,  furs,  seal-skins,  and  blubber,  of  which 
the  latter  furnishes  the  chief  profit. 

The  Greenlanders,  and  not  the  Danes,  do  the  principal 
hunting  and  fishing.  The  store-house  of  the  station  is  the 
place  of  trade,  and  at  certain  hours  of  the  day  the  besty- 
rere  is  obliged  to  have  his  place  of  business  open. 

Now  these  Greenlanders,  or  Esquimaux,  are  not  prone  to 
be  governed ;  yet  the  Danish  rule  is  satisfactory  to  them, 
and  they  submit  to  it  without  a  murmur,  and  none  the 
less  readily  that  they  have  a  voice  in  their  own  affairs. 
Each  little  town  or  hunting-station  is  at  liberty  to  send 
up  a  representative  to  sit  in  the  Parliament  of  Julianas- 
haab.  The  number  of  representatives  is  twelve.  The 
names  of  the  most  important  towns  besides  the  capital  are 
Nenortalik,  Fredericksdal,  Lichtenau  (these  two  latter  are 
missions  of  the  Moravian  Brethren),  Igalliko,  and  Kraksi- 
meut. 

The  Parliament-house  is  not  an  imposing  edifice.  I 
should  say  its  dimensions  are  about  sixteen  by  twenty 
feet.  It  is  one  story  high,  is  built  of  boards,  lined  on  the 
inside,  and  painted  blue,  and  on  the  outside  is  plastered 
over  with  pitch.  It  has  no  lobby  for  the  accommodation 
of  people  who  come  to  the  capital  with  axes  for  the  public 
grindstone,  nor  committee-rooms  for  the  better  confusion 
of  the  public  business. 

In  the  centre  of  the  one  room  there  stands  a  long  table 
of  plain  pine  boards,  and  along  either  side  there  is  one 
long  bench  of  the  same  material ;  and  on  each  bench  sit 
six  Parliamentarians,  dressed  in  seal-skin  pantaloons  and 
boots,  and  Guernsey  frocks,  with  broad  suspenders  across 
their  shoulders.  The  faces  of  these  Parliamentarians  are 
all  of  a  very  dusky  hue,  the  color  of  their  hair  is  very 
black,  and  it  does  not  seem  to  have  any  greater  familiarity 


104 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


with  combs  and  brushes  than  their  faces  with  soap  and 
towels.  However,  they  are  an  amiable-looking  party — at 
least  they  grin  and  show  their  fine  white  teeth  when  I 
enter,  and  are  altogether,  perhaps,  quite  clean  enough  for 
ordinary  Parliamentary  work.  Every  man  of  them  has  a 
pencil  in  his  hand  and  a  piece  of  paper  on  the  table  before 
him,  and  each  one  is  as  busy  taking  notes  thereon  as  some 
of  our  own  honorable  members  are  said  to  be  in  taking 
"  notes  "  of  another  description. 


A   GREENLAND   1'ABLIAMENT   IN   SESSION. 


But  I  must  not  neglect  to  mention  one  article  of  the 
Parliamentary  costume,  for  it  shines  out  so  conspicuously 
that  it  must  be  noticed — I  mean  the  official  cap  (always 
worn  when  the  House  is  in  session),  which  is  supplied  to 
each  member  by  royal  bounty.  This  cap  is  of  the  bright- 
est kind  of  scarlet  cloth,  with  a  broad  gilt  band  around 
it ;  the  royal  emblems  are  emblazoned  in  front,  and  above 
these  there  is  a  golden  polar  bear,  with  a  crown  on  his 
head,  standing  uncomfortably  on  his  hind  legs,  to  typify 


A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  105. 

Greenland.  There  is  a  thirteenth  cap  at  the  head  of  the 
table,  and  this  thirteenth  cap  covers  the  head  of  the  genial 
Mr.  Anthon,  pastor  of  Julianashaab,  and  president  of  the 
Julianashaab  Parliament,  ex  qfficio. 

The  aggregate  amount  of  dignity  possessed  by  this 
Parliament  was  quite  wonderful,  and  was,  in  truth,  as 
overwhelming  as  the  fishy  odor  with  which  it  was  im- 
pregnated. But  neither  the  fishy  odor  nor  the  dignity 
appeared  to  interfere  with  the  transaction  of  business ;  on 
the  contrary,  they  seemed  to  be  working  away  like  bea- 
vers, and,  indeed,  they  disposed  of  matters  with  such  an 
amazing  degree  of  promptness,  that  I  fell  instantly  to 
wondering  whether  dignity  would  not  be  a  good  thing  to 
introduce  into  Parliaments,  Congresses,  Assemblies,  and 
such  like  things  generally ;  and  as  to  the  fishy  atmos- 
phere, I  have  no  doubt  that  it  was  quite  as  wholesome  as 
the  atmosphere  of  some  of  our  own  legislative  halls,  where 
lobbyists  are  so  thick  about  the  doors  and  avenues,  that 
all  the  purity  which  ever  does  go  in  is  soon  done  for.  Of 
the  kind  of  business  brought  before  this  dignified  tribunal, 
I  will  give  a  few  samples. 

The  first  was  a  petition  for  relief.  The  petitioner  him- 
self stood  there  in  person,  looking  the  very  picture  of  for- 
lorn destitution.  He  stated  that  he  had  lost  his  canoe 
(kayaK),  and  he  produced  evidence  enough  to  show,  with- 
out any  swearing,  false  or  otherwise,  that  it  had  been 
crushed  and  lost  in  the  ice.  The  man,  who  had  hardly 
clothes  on  his  back  to  cover  his  nakedness,  showed  fur- 
ther that  he  had  3,  wife  and  family,  who  had  no  friends  to 
assist  them,  and  were  entirely  dependent  upon  himself  for 
support.  I  thought  it  a  doubtful  support  at  best,  and  so 
appeared  to  think  the  Parliament,  since  they  voted  an  order 
for  a  small  stipend  of  food  and  clothing,  as  per  schedule, 
to  be  drawn  by  the  wife  from  the  public  store-house,  and 

E2 


106  THE  LAS  I)   OF  DESOLATION. 

paid  for  out  of  the  Parliamentary  funds.  The  man  was 
sent  to  work  in  the  Government  blubber-house,  at  twenty- 
two  skillings  (eleven  cents)  a  day. 

The  next  case  was  similar  in  character,  only  the  peti- 
tioner was  a  well-known  young  hunter  who  had  lost  his 
kayak  by  a  fearful  accident,  which  had  nearly  cost  him  his 
life  as  well  as  boat,  and  from  the  eifects  of  which  he  had 
barely  now  recovered.  All  that  I  could  comprehend  was 
that  some  of  his  ribs  had  been  stove  in.  The  case  being 
proven,  the  question  before  Parliament  was  whether  they 
should  grant  him  relief,  which  was  unanimously  voted  in 
the  affirmative.  How  much  ?  was  the  next  question.  Af- 
ter thirteen  pencils  had  ciphered  for  a  minute  or  so,  they 
made  it  out  fourteen  dollars  (seven  American)  for  material 
for  the  kayak,  four  dollars  for  harpoon,  spear,  etc.,  and  six 
to  pay  debts  contracted  at  the  Government  store-house  for 
necessary  comforts  during  his  sickness. 

A  third  case  was  that  of  an  old  man  who  received  one 
dollar  to  buy  a  spear  with  ;  another  was  from  a  man  who 
had  a  family  of  girls,  and  no  oomiak.  He  received  twen- 
ty-four dollars,  one-half  of  which  he  was  to  refund  within 
two  years.  One  hunter  got  a  rifle  on  the  same  terms.  A 
sick  woman  obtained  some  flannel  for  a  shirt;  some  or- 
phan children,  an  order  for  bread ;  a  widow,  the  means  to 
bury  her  dead  husband. 

These,  and  a  number  more  of  similar  character,  were 
soon  disposed  of.  Some  of  the  cases  were  represented  by 
proxy,  the  applicant  residing  at  Nenortalik  or  other  dis- 
tant outpost,  whence  to  come  would  be  difficult ;  others 
presented  their  petitions  in  person.  Some  appeals  were 
thrown  out  in  part,  or  altogether;  but  these  were  very 
few,  for  public  opinion  is  strong  in  Greenland,  and  a  lofty 
sense  of  pride  prevents  begging,  except  in  the  last  extrem- 
ity. In  the  case,  however,  of  the  kayak  and  the  oomiak 


A   GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  107 

there  was  presented  a  prospect  of  future  public  advan- 
tage ;  for,  in  encouraging  these  people  by  providing  them 
with  boats,  the  public  revenues  are  increased  by  their  add- 
ing to  the  public  industry.  Thus  do  we  see  that  as  "  vil- 
lage Hampdens "  and  "  mute,  inglorious  Miltons "  may 
sometimes  lie  in  the  village  church-yard,  so  savage  legisla- 
tors and  lawgivers  may  be  Solons  and  Adam  Smiths  all  in 
one,  and  they  not  know  any  thing  about  it,  and  the  world 
be  none  the  wiser. 

And  thus  we  see  these  Greenland  Parliaments  serve  an 
excellent  purpose.  They  take  care  of  the  poor;  they  render 
assistance  to  the  unfortunate  ;  they  provide  certain  means 
of  punishing  the  indolent  and  guilty  ;  they  reward  the  in- 
dustrious ;  and  when  they  have  finished  with  their  busi- 
ness, they  adjourn,  and  go  home  to  do  their  talking ;  and 
what  more  do  you  want  with  a  Parliament  ?  Nobody,  cer- 
tainly, would  desire  them  to  vote  away  millions  of  acres 
of  the  public  lands ;  for,  although  they  might  very  well 
do  so  without  injury  to  any  body,  there  are  no  dangerous 
corporations  to  be  benefited  thereby,  and  no  public  inter- 
ests to  be  sacrificed  by  such  procedure,  and  therefore  no 
motive. 

I  was  much  interested  in  their  manner  of  encouraging 
industry.  The  system  is  regulated  on  an  increased  valua- 
tion of  all  products  of  the  hunt  and  fishery  brought  to  the 
public  store-house  after  a  certain  figure  has  been  reached. 
Then  follows  a  sliding  scale  of  prices,  which  at  the  maxi- 
mum is  double  the  ordinary  standard. 

The  punishments  are  confined  to  fines,  to  be  deducted 
at  a  certain  percentage,  until  paid,  from  every  thing  the 
hunter  sells  to  the  Government ;  and  the  means  of  collec- 
tion are  quite  effectual ;  for,  unless  the  criminal  comes  into 
the  arrangements  of  his  plan  as  decreed  by  Parliament,  he 
is  wholly  excluded  from  any  participation  in  the  benefits 


108  %HE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

of  the  colony ;  that  is  to  say,  he  is  not  allowed  to  buy  or 
trade  for  any  thing— neither  a  rifle,  ammunition,  bread,  cof- 
fee, sugar,  nor  tobacco  —  a  penalty  against  which  no  one 
was  ever  known  to  hold  out  long.  Cases  of  actual  crime 
are  rare.  If  the  offense  should  be  a  capital  one,  or  one 
involving  the  sentence  of  a  court  of  justice,  the  offender, 
or  supposed  offender,  is  sent  home  for  trial  to  Denmark. 
But  one  case  falling  under  this  head  came  to  my  knowl- 
edge. This  was  a  young  mother  suspected  of  infanticide. 
The  child  that  would  have  dishonored  her  was  found 
upon  a  rock  whence  the  tide  would  soon  have  carried  it 
off,  had  not  some  prying  individual  there  discovered  it  *and 
taken  it  to  the  village,  where  it  was  interred.  The  young 
woman  was  charged  with  having  destroyed  it.  She  con- 
fessed that  it  was  hers,  but  that  it  was  dead  when  born ; 
and  since  she  could  not  bury  it,  and  could  not  bear  to 
throw  it  into  the  sea  herself,  she  placed  it  on  the  rock  and 
hid  herself  away,  that  she  might  not  see  it  disappear.  Her 
story  was  accepted  on  the  simple  ground  of  the  unnatural- 
ness  of  the  crime  charged  ;  for  the  love  of  the  mother  for 
her  offspring  among  these  Greenlanders  is  wonderfully 
strong.  What  would  our  ancesters  of  a  few  hundred 
years  back  have  said  to  being  hauled  up  for  an  act  like 
this,  when  they  had  not  only  natural  law,  as  they  thought, 
but  human  law  as  well,  to  support  them  in  "  exposure  of 
infants,"  when  they  were  either  too  poor  or  too  lazy  to 
provide  for  all  the  little  ones  that  were  brought  into  the 
world  ? 

The  funds  for  the  disbursements  above  mentioned  are 
provided  liberally  by  the  Danish  Government — not  direct- 
ly, but  indirectly — so  that  the  system  works  to  mutual 
advantage.  For  instance,  the  price  paid,  according  to  Gov- 
ernment, at  the  public  store-room  for  a  seal-skin  is,  say  ten 
cents,  and  for  the  fox-skin  fifty  cents ;  which  amounts  are 


A  GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  109 

paid,  either  in  money  or  in  kind,  to  the  hunter,  who  goes 
away  well  satisfied.  To  this  payment  the  Government 
then  adds  a  further  payment  of  twenty  per  cent. — that  is, 
two  cents  on  the  seal-skin  and  ten  cents  on  the  fox-skin, 
which  is  credited  to  the  Parliamentary  account;  and  so 
on  for  every  barrel  of  blubber  or  other  article.  Thus,  if 
the  cost  price  of  the  products  of  the  district  of  Julianas- 
haab  should  reach  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  the  Parliament 
would  have  a  fund  of  three  thousand  to  dispense  in  char- 
ities and  benefits.  This  sum  bears  no  relation,  however,  to 
the  commercial  value  of  the  several  articles  in  the  Copenha- 
gen market.  For  there  a  fox-skin,  which  is  worth  in  Green- 
land one  Danish  dollar  (nearly  equalling  our  half-dollar),  is 
worth  in  Copenhagen  from  ten  to  thirty ;  and  most  of  the 
other  products  swell  in  the  same  proportion  during  the 
voyage  across  the  Atlantic.  So  in  like  manner,  though 
not  in  the  same  degree,  the  value  of  a  pound  of  bread  in- 
creases on  the  voyage  from  Copenhagen  to  Greenland. 
Yet  such  are  the  expenses  attendant  upon  the  transporta- 
tion, the  keeping  up  of  special  Greenland  bureaus  at  home, 
the  wear  and  tear  of  the  sixteen  ships  of  their  fleet,  and 
the  cost  of  the  Mission,  that,  notwithstanding  this  ar- 
rangement of  values,  the  Royal  Greenland  Fishing  and 
Trading  Company  turns  in  a  very  small  sum  annually  to 
the  royal  treasury..  Some  years  they  actually  run  be- 
hind. And  so  it  comes  about  that,  since  there  is  not  much 
in  the  best  of  times  to  be  squeezed  out  of  this  Land  of 
Desolation,  the  Company  simply  suffers  its  business  to  go 
on  in  the  old  even  tenor  of  its  ways — every  thing  system- 
atic and  orderly,  its  ships  neat  and  well  disciplined,  its  of- 
ficers honest  and  capable,  its  sailors  well  drilled  for  any 
emergency  that  may  call  them  into  the  naval  service,  the 
mission  schools  and  the  churches  well  kept  up.  If  by  this 
means  a  few  officers  are  provided  with  small  but  sufficient 


110  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

salaries,  and  a  number  of  people  are  supplied  with  com- 
fortable livings  (and  are  sure  of  a  pension  if  disabled,  and 
their  families  provided  for  when  they  die),  surely  no  great 
harm  is  done  to  any  body  if  the  Danish  Government  is  not 
greatly  enriched ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  seven  thousand 
human  beings,  but  for  this  admirable  system,  instead  of 
living  in  the  light  of  Christian  civilization,  and  in  the  en- 
joyment of  its  benefits,  would  still  be  steeped  in  that  same 
condition  of  barbarism  that  their  forefathers  were  when 
they  overran  the  fair  villages  of  the  ancient  Northmen. 
To-day  the  two  races  live  in  perfect  harmony,  and  in  mu- 
tual dependence  on  each  other.  A  single  Dane  may  be 
surrounded  by  a  hundred  descendants  of  the  murdering 
and  revengeful  Krassippe,  and  is  encouraged  by  them  in 
every  thing  he  may  attempt  to  do. 

These  all  seem  like  homely  practices ;  but  then  it  must 
be  borne  in  mind  that  Greenland  is  a  long  way  off,  and  the 
Danes  are  a  gallant  people.  I  do  not  believe  there  is  any 
other  country  in  the  world  that  would  maintain  colonies 
and  support  missions  without  some  prospective  advantage 
to  themselves.  There  is  one  prohibitory  act,  which  the 
Company  exercises  in  all  these  colonies,  which  I  can  not 
refrain  from  mentioning  before  I  quit  this  interesting  sub- 
ject. It  is  the  commendable  policy  which  they  pursue 
in  absolutely  excluding  that  villainous  "  fire-water,"  that 
has  played  such  a  conspicuous  part  in  the  demoralization 
and  destruction  of  our  own  Indians.  Once  a  year  only  are 
the  people  allowed  to  smile  at  the  bottom  of  an  empty 
glass.  This  is  on  the  king's  birthday,  when  every  able- 
bodied  man  in  Greenland  is  allowed  to  march  up  to  the 
Government  store-room,  there  to  receive,  each  in  his  turn, 
a  glass  of  "  schnapps,"  which  he  drains  to  the  health  and 
happiness  of  the  mighty  Nalegaksoak  who  occupies  the 
Danish  throne.  The  women  are  excluded ;  but  a  man 


A   GREENLAND  PARLIAMENT.  Ill 

may  kiss  his  wife  just  when  he  pleases,  without  offense  to 
any  body ;  and,  while  in  the  act,  he  may  drop  from  his 
own  capacious  maw  (like  the  cooing  dove  that  feeds  its 
mate  within  the  cot)  whatever  portion  of  the  king's  boun- 
ty he  may  feel  inclined  to  spare,  and  nobody  be  any  the 
wiser  for  it ;  nor  can  any  body  be  much  hurt,  as  the 
schnapps  glass  is  none  of  the  largest,  and  the  wife's  por- 
tion is  not  likely  to  be  more  than  the  half. 

A  system  which  is  thus  kept  so  well  under  control,  with 
the  niceties  of  administration  so  carefully  preserved,  could 
hardly  be  otherwise  than  successful.  In  fact,  I  do  not  see 
that  any  thing  of  human  devising  could  better  suit  the 
purpose  of  its  founding  than  this  Greenland  Company, 
which  transacts  business  and  does  good  works  under  the 
name  and  title  of  "  Kongelige  Gronlandske  Handel,  i  Kio- 
benhavn." 

It  was  founded  in  the  year  1781,  much  upon  the  same 
plan  as  that  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company.  The  whole 
trade  of  Greenland  is,  through  this  Company,  an  absolute 
monopoly  of  the  Crown,  and  a  foreigner  is  not  allowed  to 
trade  to  the  value  of  a  skilling  with  Dane  or  Esquimaux — 
a  system  which  all  the  better  enables  the  benevolent  in- 
tentions of  the  Government  to  be  carried  out,  as  spirits 
and  other  hurtful  articles  can  be  excluded  from  the  coun- 
try. The  Company  is  controlled  by  a  Directory  in  Copen- 
hagen (Kiobenhavn  properly) ;  and  to  its  present  presiding 
officer,  Herr  Justitsraad  C.  S.  M.  Olrik,  knight  of  Danne- 
brog,  and  formerly  the  enlightened  and  genial  Inspector 
of  North  Greenland,  the  Company's  increasing  prosperity 
and  usefulness  are  largely  due. 


112  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

A  GREENLAND  BALL. 

MONDAY  was  occupied  by  our  party  in  a  very  agreeable 
and  profitable  manner — by  the  photographers  especially, 
who,  early  in  the  day,  took  possession  of  one  of  the  gov- 
ernor's rooms,  and  photographed  the  whole  town  and  near- 
ly every  body  in  it.  The  following  day  was  fixed  upon 
for  our  departure ;  but  the  only  pilot  in  the  place  was 
otherwise  employed,  and  we  were  forced  to  wait  until  he 
was  ready  for  us.  In  short,  he  was  bringing  in  another 
vessel,  and  one  of  infinitely  more  importance  to  Julianas- 
haab  than  any  number  of  Panthers.  It  was  the  one  ship 
of  the  year,  a  ship  bringing  to  the  colonists  their  sup- 
plies for  the  next  twelve  months,  and  was  to  return  home 
laden  with  the  wealth  which  they  had  gathered. 

I  do  not  remember  any  thing  in  all  my  experience  in 
Greenland  that  has  left  a  stronger  impression  upon  my 
mind  than  the  arrival  of  this  ship,  nor  any  thing  which 
made  the  isolation  of  the  Danes  who  dwelt  there  so  appar- 
ent. In  these  days  of  telegraphs,  and  steamships,  and  quick 
transit  everywhere,  it  is  rather  painful  to  contemplate 
civilized,  refined,  and  Christian  families  being  a  whole 
year  without  once  hearing  from  the  world.  To  be  sure,  it 
has  its  advantages,  for  they  are  saved  many  annoyances, 
and  are  spared  the  everlasting  bore  of  writing  letters  for 
the  mail.  But  then,  what  hopes  and  fears  the  mail  must 
come  charged  with  when  it  comes  but  once  a  year !  with 
what  almost  terrible  anxiety  they  must  look  for  news  from 
home !  what  changes  may  have  taken  place  in  the  year 


A  GREENLAND  BALL.  113 

gone  by !  what  may  Death  not  have  done  with  the  loved 
ones  in  that  long  interval !  Fathers  and  mothers,  broth- 
ers, sisters,  and  friends,  are  sending  tokens  by  that  winged 
messenger  across  the  sea ;  but  what  if  they  should  be  sad 
ones,  and  not  those  they  hoped  for  ? 

When  the  announcement  was  made  that  the  ship  was 
in  the  offing,  the  excitement  was  at  first  intense,  and  the 
hours  of  the  day  while  the  ship  was  coming  up  the  fiord, 
with  baffling  winds,  were  most  anxious  ones.  Of  course, 
there  were  many  exceptions.  Indeed,  the  people  general- 
ly could  have  no  other  possible  interest  in  the  arrival  of 
the  ship  than  the  mere  selfish  one  of  what  they  would 
gain  thereby.  I  speak  only  of  those  Danish  residents  who 
were  bred  in  Denmark,  and  whose  friends  dwell  there  now. 
To  these,  the  arrival  had  something  in  it  of  a  painful  char- 
acter, mingled  with  anticipated  pleasure.  Hope  and  fear 
seemed  alternately  to  prevail  in  the  breasts  of  the  families 
of  the  governor,  the  pastor,  and  the  doctor. 

Meanwhile,  every  boat  in  the  settlement  had  gone  down 
to  assist  in  towing  up  the  ship ;  and  at  length  the  sound 
of  splashing  oars  was  heard  upon  the  still  night  air ;  then 
voices  were  distinguished  calling  to  each  other  or  issuing 
the  word  of  command.  Soon,  above  the  rocky  point  of  the 
harbor,  we  saw  the  tops  of  two  masts,  with  their  black 
yards,  creeping  nearer  and  nearer;  then  a  vessel  burst  in 
view,  through  the  brilliant  moonlight.  The  ship  was  now 
pointed  for  the  harbor,  and  was  coming  slowly  up  beside 
us,  towed  by  half  a  dozen  boats,  and  surrounded  by  a 
swarm  of  men  in  their  little  kayaks,  shouting,  talking,  and 
gesticulating,  in  their  exuberant  happiness. 

I  stood  upon  the  Panther's  deck  watching  this  scene  of 
animation,  until  the  anchor  had  gone  into  the  phosphores- 
cent sea  with  its  unearthly  "  cr-r-r-r-r-r-r-up."  The  moor- 
ing-lines  were  soon  all  out  and  made  fast.  The  crowd  of 


114  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

people  then  left  the  sea,  and  no  sounds  were  heard  but  the 
orders  on  board  the  newly-arrived  vessel  for  stowing  the 
sails  and  making  every  thing  snug  on  board.  Then  I 
heard  people  getting  down  into  a  boat;  the  oars  were 
splashing  again,  and,  as  I  traced  the  streak  of  phosphores- 
cent light  that  trailed  away  and  lengthened  as  the  boat 
receded,  I  knew  that  it  was  carrying  ashore  the  mail,  with 
all  its  freight  of  words. 

The  vessel  proved  to  be  the  Tjalfe,  one  of  the  best  of 
the  Company's  vessels — a  brig  of  three  hundred  tons,  and 
as  taut  and  tidy  as  a  man-of-war.  I  "had  a  visit  from  her 
master  in  the  morning,  and  was  rejoiced  to  find  in  him  an 
old  friend,  to  whom,  in  1855,  when  I  had  escaped  with  Dr. 
Kane  from  the  abandoned  brig  Advance,  I  was  indebted 
for  many  serviceable  attentions — Captain  Ammondsen,  one 
of  the  most  tried  and  trusty  servants  of  the  Royal  Com- 
pany. 

Upon  going  ashore  in  the  morning  with  Captain  Am- 
mondsen, I  was  pleased  to  learn  that  every  body's  letters 
brought  good  news.  We  found  them  in  a  wilderness  of 
papers,  and  books,  and  packages,  containing  every  con- 
ceivable thing  that  thoughtful  friends  would  think  of  send- 
ing to  cheer  and  gladden  lives  that  must  be  at  times  over- 
whelmed with  loneliness.  It  was  very  touching  to  see 
these  evidences  of  remembrance  scattered  about,  and  very 
gratifying  to  be  a  partaker  of  the  general  joy.  Photo- 
graphs were  there  by  the  dozen  ;  one  of  a  little  stranger 
that  had  come  into  the  world  within  the  twelvemonth,  and 
sent  his  compliments  and  his  picture ;  another,  of  a  newly- 
married  couple,  who  looked  peculiarly  happy  for  people 
who  had  been  married  nearly  six  months,  and  sent  their 
picture  in  proof  of  it ;  another  was  from  an  aged  mother ; 
another,  from  a  brother  who  had  gone  into  the  army ;  an- 
other, from  a  boy  at  school.  I  went  from  house  to  house, 


A   UHEEXLAXD  HALL.  115 

and  everywhere  it  was  the  same.  Happiness  was  univer- 
sal; and  it  really  seemed  as  if  solitude  might  be  "  sweet  so- 
ciety," if  retirement  brought  such  occasional  bliss :  only, 
the  retirement  of  a  year  for  the  sake  of  the  emotion  is  a 
little  too  much  for  ordinary  mortals. 

As  for  the  people  in  general,  they  were  delighted  beyond 
expression.  Nothing  but  the  presence  of  actual  starva- 
tion could  possibly  have  induced  any  hunter  to  go  out  at 
such  a  time.  Shouting  and  singing  were  the  order  of  the 
day.  The  harbor  was  alive  with  their  cunning  little  kay- 
aks, shooting  hither  and  thither,  the  boatmen  indulging 
themselves  in  the  most  ludicrous  speech  and  gesture,  by 
way  of  exhibiting  their  satisfaction,  not  only  at  the  arrival 
of  the  Danish  ship,  but  that  two  vessels  were  in  the  har- 
bor at  one  time — a  sight  which  they  had  never  seen  be- 
fore. Then,  to  cap  the  climax,  when  the  evening  came 
they  would  have  a  dance.  Every  body  was  invited,  and, 
of  course,  none  of  the  sailors  of  the  two  ships  made  any 
objection  to  a  frolic  of  that  nature.  They  had  not  shared 
the  people's  satisfaction  in  the  least ;  they  would  be  glad 
enough,  on  the  other  hand,  to  be  anywhere  else  almost ; 
but  a  dance !  what  sailor  could  resist  that  ?  And  as  for 
our  officers  and  passengers,  all  were  alike  ready  for  a  little 
fun,  to  break  the  monotony  of  life,  either  as  actors  or  spec- 
tators, and  willing  to  take  a  hand  in  any  thing  that  might 
be  turning  up. 

I  asked  the  governor  if  there  was  nothing  to  be  feared 
from  letting  two  ships'  companies  loose  among  the  peace- 
ful villagers,  where  there  were  no  police  to  take  rude  fel- 
lows into  custody  ?  "  Oh  no,"  he  answered,  "  not  in  the 
least ;  let  them  come.  If  the  men  are  rude,  the  women 
will  take  care  of  themselves,  I  promise  you ;  and  if  not, 
they  have  big  brothers  plenty.  Have  no  fear;  there  are 
no  more  modest  women  in  the  world  than  these  Green- 


116  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

land  girls,  and  sailors  are  notoriously  quick  to  detect  hon- 
esty, and,  when  found,  to  respect  it." 

So  a  dance  was  arranged  for,  or  a  "  ball,"  as  our  people 
facetiously  called  it.  The  carpenter-shop  was  secured  for 
the  occasion,  and  a  neighboring  shed  for  a  supper-room ; 
and  the  preparations  went  on  all  the  afternoon.  The  or- 
chestra of  Julianashaab  (consisting  of  a  dilapidated  keg 
with  heads  of  tanned  seal-hide,  and  the  cracked  fiddle 
already  mentioned)  was  secured,  and  all  was  ready  by 
eight  o'clock,  when  I  went  ashore  to  see  the  opening. 

The  decorations  of  the  ball-room  in  the  way  of  flags, 

J  O     " 

and  Danish  and  American  bunting  generally,  were  aston- 
ishing to  the  natives.  Candles  were  stuck  around  the 
room  in  reckless  profusion.  Maria  had  about  a  bushel  of 
coffee,  which  she  was  roasting  and  boiling  in  the  shed. 
The  whole  village  was  in  commotion.  Women  in  red 
boots,  women  in  white  boots,  women  in  blue,  and  green, 
and  yellow  boots,  were  hurrying  to  the  ball-room  from 
every  quarter.  They  had  all  turned  out  in  their  very 
best,  and  some  of  the  toilets  were,  to  say  the  least,  stun- 
ning. Boots,  beads,  pantaloons,  and  ribbons  were  all  of 
the  gayest  and  the  finest.  The  maidens  and  matrons  of 
Julianashaab  sustained  the  credit  of  their  sex ;  and  they 
showed,  too,  that  they  were  conscious  of  appearing  to  bet- 
ter advantage  than  usual ;  for  they  looked  about  with  less 
timidity  than  on  ordinary  occasions,  as  if  to  say,  "  Look  at 
me  now,  and  see  what  I  can  do  when  a  great  occasion 
makes  it  worth  my  while."  Several  of  them  were  pretty, 
and  quite  stylish,  and  certainly  this  is  saying  much,  for 
their  peculiar  style  of  costume  is  rather  trying  to  the  ordi- 
nary female  figure.  As  for  dancing,  no  costume  could  pos- 
sibly be  more  suitable,  and,  when  on  the  floor,  its  advan- 
tages were  quite  apparent,  for  I  have  rarely  seen  dancers 
that  were  more  light  and  graceful  in  their  movements. 


A  GREENLAND  BALL.  117 

I  would  not,  however,  be  understood  to  recommend  the 
dress  for  general  adoption  by  dancing  girls. 

The  confidence  with  which  the  ladies  approached  the 
ball-room  seemed  to  forsake  them  when  they  had  got  in- 
side and  there  awaited  the  men ;  for  the  moment  they  had 
passed  the  door  they  darted  to  the  remotest  corner,  where 
they  all  huddled  together  as  close  as  they  could  pack 
themselves,  like  a  flock  of  frightened  sheep  run  one  by  one 
into  a  pen.  The  men  did  not  keep  them  long  in  this  state 
of  timid  embarrassment ;  but  they  seemed,  however,  to  be 
in  no  very  particular  hurry,  sauntering  along  quite  leis- 
urely, with  their  hands  in  their  pockets,  and  short  clay 
pipes  in  their  mouths.  Most  of  them  were  capless,  and 
none  of  them  seemed  to  have  thought  of  "  dressing  "  for 
the  occasion,  except  the  Parliamentarians,  who,  out  of  re- 
spect for  their  own  dignity  (as  I  suppose),  wore  the  offi- 
cial scarlet  on  their  heads,  royal  emblems,  gold  lace,  and 
all — a  top-covering  which,  taken  in  connection  with  their 
Guernsey  frocks,  broad  suspenders,  and  huge  seal-skin  pan- 
taloons, coming  up  under  the  arm-pits,  made  a  style  of 
official  get-up  not,  I  fancy,  to  be  seen  in  any  other  coun- 
try. Yet  the  lord  chancellor  wears  his  frizzled  wig,  and 
why  not  they  their  scarlet  caps  ? 

The  sailors  came  ashore  from  the  two  ships,  jabbering 
away  at  each  other  quite  frantically,  in  Danish  and  En- 
glish ;  and  the  officers  and  passengers  came  likewise. 

But  where  was  Concordia  the  while,  and  where  was  the 
Prince?  for  they  were  to  open  the  ball.  The  question 
was  asked  repeatedly,  and  as  often  remained  unanswered. 
Whispers  began  to  pass  around  the  room.  Had  there 
been  an  elopement?  Marcus  was  there,  trying  hard  to 
look  unconcerned  by  smoking  a  short  clay  pipe,  and  keep- 
ing his  hands  in  their  usual  place  of  safety.  Every  body 
seemed  to  look  to  him  for  explanation. 


118  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

At  length  the  mystery  was  cleared  up,  and  very  sudden- 
ly, for  the  Prince  came  bouncing  into  the  room  holding 
Concordia  by  the  hand.  The  arrival  created  a  sensation. 
Concordia  was  literally  dazzling.  The  Prince  had  clearly 
been  assisting  at  her  toilet.  She  was  covered  with  beads 
and  jewelry.  A  magnificent  plaid  shawl  which  the  Prince 
had  sported  through  the  voyage,  and  which  had  two  days 
before  suddenly  disappeared,  now  reappeared  in  the  shape 
of  a  jaunty  jacket,  trimmed  with  eider-down,  on  Concor- 
dia's  graceful  shoulders.  And  then,  what  shining  panta- 
loons of  the  softest  silver  seal-skin !  what  spotless,  snow- 
white  boots  inclosed  her  dainty  little  feet !  But  the 
Prince  —  ah  !  what  a  stunning  get-up,  to  be  sure  !  Sea- 
boots  matching  Concordia's  for  length,  if  not  in  purity  of 
color ;  a  bright  scarf  across  his  shoulders  and  around  his 
waist ;  a  Scotch  cap,  with  a  dissipated  feather  in  it  — 
what  a  picture  for  a  ball-room !  No  wonder  that  Marcus 
grew  several  shades  lighter  in  color;  no  wonder  that  his 
pipe  fell  out  of  his  mouth  and  broke  in  pieces  on  the  floor ; 
no  wonder  that  he  stole  out  of  the  room  as  if  the  place 
were  too  hot  for  him,  and  should  show  himself  no  more  in 
the  ball-room  that  night ! 

"  Strike  up !"  shouted  the  Prince,  bringing  down  a  sea- 
boot  on  the  floor.  "  Rat-tat-a-tat "  went  the  keg,  "  cr-r- 
r-p  cr-r-r-p  cr-r-r-p"  went  the  cracked  fiddle,  and  then 
both  went  in  to  do  their  best  and  win ;  but  the  keg,  hav- 
ing got  the  lead,  kept  it,  and  the  cracked  fiddle  was  no- 
where. When  both  had  become  well  warmed  up  in  the 
race,  the  Prince  brought  down  his  sea-boot  again,  making 
the  old  carpenter-shop  fairly  quake  and  tremble ;  then, 
with  a  shout  which  was  probably  taken  for  an  American 
war-whoop,  he  seized  Concordia  by  the  waist ;  others  fol- 
lowed his  example,  and  never  did  "  Pop  goes  the  Weasel  " 
do  duty  before  to  such  a  whirl  as  followed. 


OONOOEDIA   I>RES6EI>    FOE    THE    BAJ>1~ 


A   GREENLAND  BALL.  121 

The  ball  was  opened !  The  Prince  and  Concordia  had 
gracefully  done  their  duty,  and  satisfied  the  public  expec- 
tation. They  had  given  countenance  to  the  revelry,  and 
the  revelry  went  on.  To  say  that  it  never  stopped,  would 
be  to  exaggerate;  but  to  say  that  it  never  would  have 
stopped  had  there  been  something  of  what  Dick  Swiveller 
called  "  the  rosy,"  might  possibly  be,  to  speak  the  truth, 
within  bounds.  The  revellers  certainly  made  "  a  night  of 
it,"  if  a  night  ever  was  made  in  a  Greenland  summer.  As 
it  was,  the  coffee  had  all  given  out,  a  whole  box  of  tobacco 
had  disappeared,  the  keg  had  resolved  itself  into  its  origi- 
nal staves,  and  the  cracked  fiddle  had  but  one  string  left, 
and  that  had  been  twice  tied,  when  the  ladies,  with  their 
beautiful  boots  all  knocked  out  of  shape,  began  to  drag 
their  weary  bodies  off  to  their  huts,  and  the  sailors,  with 
their  coats  on  their  arms,  hailed  for  boats. 

Meanwhile,  much  consternation  had  been  produced  by  a 
report  which  was  set  in  circulation,  that  a  Parliamentarian 
had  danced  himself  away,  all  but  his  cap ;  and  a  girl  had, 
in  like  manner,  disappeared,  all  but  a  ribbon.  The  con- 
sternation was  allayed,  however,  when  it  was  discovered 
that  the  two  had  stolen  away  together,  and  were  getting 
married  at  the  parson's. 

Marcus  never  appeared  again  in  the  ball-room  after  his 
discomfiture;  but  I  saw  him  crawling  in  the  shadow  of 
a  rock,  where  he  could  look  through  the  door  and  catch 
an  occasional  glimpse  of  his  lady-love  as  she  swung  round 
in  the  Prince's  arms.  He  beckoned  me  to  him,  and  whis- 
pered in  my  ear,  pointing  to  the  gay  and  festive  room 
from  which  the  bright  light  was  streaming  out  into  the 
night,  "  He  no  good ;  me "  (pointing  to  his  breast)  "  son 
of  head  man  of  Bungetak."  Saying  which,  he  smiled  in  a 
self-satisfied  and  "bland-like"  manner,  and  immediately 
drew  himself  deep  within  the  shadow  of  the  rock.  Then  I 

F 


133  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

went  my  way  on  board,  marvelling  how  very  much  a  man 
was  half-savage  Marcus. 

As  this  was  rny  last  visit  ashore,  I  had  bidden  my 
friends  good-bye,  after  exchanging  some  little  souvenirs 
with  them.  Early  in  the  morning  the  anchor  was  tripped, 
and  we  were  away.  The  little  town  in  the  wilderness  was 
at  our  backs,  and  we  were  threading  once  more  the  wind- 
ing fiord  among  the  islands  and  icebergs,  rejoiced  at  hav- 
ing seen  a  spot  of  earth  so  full  of  romantic  associations ; 
had  beheld  its  ruins, 

"Trod  upon  them,  and  had  set 
Our  foot  upon  a  rev'rend  history." 


"But  these  recede.     Above  me  are  the  Alps, 
The  palaces  of  Nature,  whose  vast  walls 
Have  pinnacled  in  clouds  their  snowy  scalps, 
And  throned  Eternity  in  icy  halls 
Of  cold  sublimity,  where  forms  and  falls 
The  avalanche — the  thunderbolt  of  snow! 
All  that  expands  the  spirit,  yet  appalls, 
Gather  around  these  summits,  as  to  show 
How  Earth  may  pierce  to  Heaven,  yet  leave  vain  man  below." 

Childe  Harold. 


PART  THE  SECOND. 
PALACES  OF  NATURE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ICE   AND    SNOW. 

IN  the  previous  chapters  we  have  traced  the  history 
of  the  Norman-Greenlanders  from  their  first  appearance 
to  their  decay.  We  have  witnessed  their  early  struggles, 
have  observed  them  in  their  prosperity,  and  have  stood 
beside  the  ruined  edifices  erected  by  their  hands,  and  read 
there  a  mournful  story  of  a  fallen  race. 

Upon  the  causes  of  their  fall  we  have,  however,  barely 
speculated.  Among  them  all,  none  possess  an  interest  to 
equal  that  one  mighty  cause  which  has  been  silently  work- 
ing there  for  countless  ages.  Beside  those  determined 
Northmen,  Nature  herself  was  erecting  edifices  which,  by 
destroying  the  life-giving  heat  of  the  atmosphere,  paved 
the  way  for  poverty  and  death.  With  just  propriety  we 
may  call  these  edifices  palaces  of  Nature ;  and  now  to  ex- 
amine them  will  be  our  task.  To  do  that,  we  leave  the 
fiord  of  "  the  deserted  homes  "  and  steam  into  one  that  lies 
to  the  north  of  it.  This  is  called  the  fiord  of  Sermitsialik, 
which  signifies  "the  place  of  ice." 

And  here  we  will  witness  phenomena  such  as  are  not  to 
be  witnessed  elsewhere  in  the  whole  known  world.  These 
phenomena  exhibit  results  grand  beyond  any  thing  in  or 
upon  the  earth,  not  excepting  the  earthquake  and  volcano. 


136  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

This  fiord  of  the  ice  is  about  of  equal  length  with  that 
of  the  "  deserted  homes."  The  two  are  separated  from 
each  other  by  a  mountain-ridge  which  culminates  in  the 
Redkammen.  The  same  ridge  continues  to  the  south, 
and,  reaching  the  sea  again,  incloses  the  region  of  Erics- 
fiord,  and  the  little  earthly  paradise  where  dwelt  the  kings 
of  the  sea  in  ancient  times. 

The  mountain-ridge  which  thus  encircles  Ericsfiord  like 
a  horse-shoe  has  no  break  in  it,  and  it  is  therefore  a  bar- 
rier. Northward  of  it  there  is  another  great  ridge,  and 
between  the  two  there  is  a  wide  valley.  This  valley- 
comes  down  to  the  sea  at  the  head  of  the  fiord  of  Sermit- 
sialik,  but  it  is  not  green  like  the  valleys  that  lie  beneath 
the  shelter  of  the  ridge  of  the  Redkammen,  but  is  filled 
with  ice.  This  ice  is  in  places  more  than  a  thousand  feet 
in  depth,  and  from  two  to  four  miles  wide — occupying  the 
valley  completely. 

The  ice  which  thus  fills  the  valley  is  called  a  glacier. 
Ice-stream,  however,  the  Danes  distinguish  it,  thus  mark- 
ing the  difference,  between  it  and  the  eis  blmken,  which  we 
call  the  mer  de  glace,  or  ice-sea. 

The  ice-sea  is  the  great  reservoir  of  ice  which  covers  the 
interior  of  Greenland,  and  the  glacier  of  the  fiord  of  Ser- 
mitsialik  is  but  a  branch — a  stream — that  descends  from 
it  through  the  valley  to  the  fiord.  It  is  one  of  many  hun- 
dreds of  similar  streams  which  are  to  be  seen  upon  the 
Greenland  coast,  and  by  which  the  precipitations  from  the 
atmosphere  are  discharged  into  the  ocean.  They  corre- 
spond to  the  rivers  of  other  lands.  These  precipitations 
are  in  the  form  of  snow.  The  air,  which  dispenses  heat 
and  cold,  drought  and  moisture,  life  and  death  to  the  ut- 
termost ends  of  the  earth,  is  not  neglectful  of  Greenland. 
The  air  soaks  up  the  vapor  from  the  sea,  and  drops  it  as 
snow-flakes  upon  the  sides  and  summits  of  the  Greenland 


IGE  AND  SNOW.  127 

mountains.  These  snow-flakes  harden  to  ice,  and  the  proc- 
ess goes  on  until  the  mountains  are  covered,  as  Mont 
Blanc  of  the  Alps  is  covered,  and  the  ice  flowing  down 
their  sides  has  filled  the  lower  lands  between  them.  In 
many  places  this  process  has  so  long  continued,  that  the 
valleys  between  the  mountains  here  and  there  have  be- 
come level  with  the  summits  of  the  mountains  themselves, 
and  there  is  a  desert  waste  of  whiteness,  smooth  almost  as 
the  sea,  as  void  of  life  as  Sahara,  and  more  dreary  to  look 
upon. 

I  ascended  once  to  such  a  level  plane,  reaching  eighty 
miles  from  the  coast,  at  an  altitude  of  five  thousand  feet. 
This  ascent  was  upon  the  glacier,  at  an  angle,  when  I  first 
set  out,  of  about  six  degrees  with  the  horizon  ;  but  after- 
wards, upon  the  mer  de  glace,  it  was  by  a  scarcely  percep- 
tible acclivity.  Unhappily  I  was  set  upon  by  a  tempest. 
The  temperature  sank  to  thirty-four  degrees  below  zero, 
having  steadily  fallen  to  that  point  as  I  climbed  higher 
and  higher  in  the  air.  Nothing  could  possibly  be  more 
terrible  than  a  wind  under  such  conditions,  except,  per- 
haps, a  furnace-blast.  Mercury  hardened  almost  to  the 
consistency  of  lead.  The  moisture  of  the  breath  froze  on 
the  beard  in  solid  lumps  of  ice.  The  nose  and  cheeks 
grew  white,  and  life  was  in  danger.  The  drifting  snow 
which  came  whirling  along  the  icy  plain  was  like  the 
sand-clouds  of  the  desert,  which  oftentimes  overwhelm 
travellers.  There  was  no  chance  for  life  except  in  flight. 
I  was  accompanied  by  five  persons,  who  were  all  less  ac- 
customed to  such  exposure  than  myself.  We  turned  our 
backs  to  the  wind,  and  descended  as  rapidly  as  possible 
to  the  level  of  the  sea,  where  the  temperature  was  zero, 
at  which  degree  of  cold  life  is  supported  without  incon- 
venience. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  inflict  upon  a  man  greater  tor- 


128  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

ture  than  to  expose  him  to  such  a  storm.  The  effect,  after 
a  time,  is  to  make  life  undesirable.  First  comes  alarm, 
then  pain,  then  lack  of  perception.  When  one  dies  from 
freezing,  it  is  the  brain  which  first  suffers  eclipse.  True, 
the  cold  has  not  solidified  it,  but  has  made  it  torpid,  like 
certain  animals  in  the  winter-time,  with  which  one  may  do 
any  thing  and  they  will  not  resist,  being  quite  incapable 
of  receiving  an  impression.  One  of  my  comrades  said,  "  I 
can  not  go  any  farther ;  I  do  not  want  to ;  I  am  sleepy ; 
I  can  not  walk."  Another  said,  "I  am  no  longer  cold;  I 
am  quite  warm  again  ;  shall  we  not  camp  ?"  This  proved 
that  there  was  the  greater  need  of  haste  and  exertion,  if 
we  would  not  all  be  destroyed. 

The  whole  continent  of  Greenland  is,  say,  1200  miles 
long  by  600  broad.  This  gives  720,000  square  miles  of 
superficial  area,  and,  assuming  the  ice,  which  covers  the 
greater  part  of  it,  to  have  the  very  moderate  average 
depth  of  500  feet,  we  have  a  grand  total  of  70.000  cubic 
miles  of  ice — a  result  which  seems  almost  fabulous. 

-It  is  not  uninteresting  to  know  that  all  this  vast  accu- 
mulation of  ice  is  the  property  of  Denmark.  And  there 
are  probably  few  persons  who  understand  fully  the  loss 
we  suffered  when  we  failed  to  purchase  from  that  country 
the  earthquake  island  of  St.  Thomas ;  for  it  was  then  in 
contemplation,  should  the  Senate  ratify  the  treaty  of  an- 
nexation, to  open  negotiations  for  buying  up  all  these 
Greenland  glaciers  and  the  Iceland  Yokuls  besides.  And 
there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  Danish  king  would  have 
gladly  sold  out  the  whole  of  them.  A  king  who  does  not 
appreciate  the  value  of  an  earthquake  can  hardly  be  ex- 
pected to  bestow  his  confidence  on  glaciers. 


GLACIERS  AND  ICEBERGS.  139 


CHAPTER  II. 

GLACIERS  AND  ICEBERGS. 

BEFORE  proceeding  with  our  narrative  we  will  dwell  a 
little  upon  the  great  phenomena  of  nature  to  which  the 
previous  chapter  called  attention. 

We  have  seen  that  the  great  sea  of  ice  which  covers 
Greenland,  and  makes  it  the  Land  of  Desolation  that  it  is, 
is  formed  from  snow-flakes.  That  formation  takes  place 
only  in  certain  conditions  of  temperature,  which  of  course 
vary  with  the  degrees  of  latitude. 

The  formation  of  glaciers  has  been  for  a  long  time  a 
fruitful  source  of  speculation  among  men  of  science.  Into 
these  we  will  not  enter  at  any  length,  for  my  purpose  is 
rather  to  give  the  results  of  personal  observation  and  inci- 
dents of  adventure,  than  to  recite  either  the  facts  or  reflec- 
tions of  others.  Yet  a  few  words  of  discussion  may  not 
be  here  out  of  place. 

Every  reader  is  aware  that  in  the  upper  regions  of  the 
atmosphere  the  moisture  which  is  precipitated  on  the 
mountain-top  assumes  the  form  of  snow,  while  down  at 
the  mountain's  base  it  is  rain.  In  descending  a  mountain 
nothing  is  more  common  than  to  pass  from  one  condition 
to  the  other — first  a  storm  of  dry  snow,  then  moist  snow, 
then  water.  In  Greenland  the  snow  falls  dry.  The 
mountains  are  lofty,  and  it  never  rains  upon  them  at  all. 
A  fresh  layer  of  snow  is  laid  on  every  year.  Should  this 
continue  uninterruptedly,  of  course  the  mountains  would 
rise  to  an  indefinite  extent.  Enormous  quantities  break 
loose  and  roll  down  the  mountain-sides  in  avalanches;  but 

F2 


130  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

this  is  but  a  small  amount  in  comparison  with  the  deposit. 
The  glagiers  are  the  means  of  drainage  of  these  great 
snow-fields.  These  snow-fields  are  turned  to  ice  by  a 
very  simple  process,  and  the  ice  flows  to  the  sea. 

The  surface  snow  on  the  mountain  is  white,  dry,  and 
light.  Deeper  down,  it  is  hard ;  still  deeper,  it  is  clear 
transparent  ice.  The  clear  ice  which  forms  such  grand 
and  beautiful  arches  of  blue  and  green  in  the  glaciers  as 
seen  along  the  Greenland  coast,  was  once  powdery  snow 
upon  the  loftiest  mountains,  probably  in  the  very  interior 
of  the  continent.  The  transformation  is  an  interesting 
process,  and  the  movement  of  the  ice  itself  from  the 
mountain  to  the  sea  is  one  of  the  strange  mysteries  of  na- 
ture. With  respect  to  the  former,  Professor  Tyndall  has 
stated  the  case  so  clearly  that  I  can  not  refrain  from  quot- 
ing the  following  passage  from  his  excellent  work  en- 
titled "The  Glaciers  of  the  Alps:" 

"  Could  our  vision  penetrate  into  the  body  of  the  gla- 
cier, we  should  find  that  the  change  from  white  to  blue 
essentially  consists  in  the  gradual  expulsion  of  the  air 
which  was  originally  entangled  in  the  meshes  of  the  fallen 
snow.  Whiteness  always  results  from  the  intimate  and 
irregular  mixture  of  air  and  a  transparent  solid ;  a  crushed 
diamond  would  resemble  snow.  If  we  pound  the  more 
transparent  rock-salt  into  powder,  we  have  a  substance  as 
white  as  the  whitest  culinary  salt ;  and  the  colorless  glass 
vessel  which  holds  the  salt  would  also,  if  pounded,  give 
a  powder  as  white  as  the  salt  itself.  It  is  a  law  of  light 
that,  in  passing  from  one  substance  to  another  possessing 
a  different  power  of  refraction,  a  portion  of  it  is  always  re- 
flected. Hence,  when  light  falls  upon  a  transparent  solid 
mixed  with  air,  at  each  passage  of  light  from  the  air  to 
the  solid  and  from  the  solid  to  the  air,  a  portion  of  it  is 
reflected ;  and  in  the  case  of  a  powder,  this  reflection  oc- 


GLACIERS  AND  ICEBERGS.  131 

curs  so  frequently  that  the  passage  of  the  light  is  practi- 
cally cut  off.  Thus,  from  the  mixture  of  two  perfectly 
transparent  substances  we  obtain  an  opaque  one ;  from 
the  intimate  mixture  of  air  and  water  we  obtain  foam. 
Clouds  owe  their  opacity  to  the  same  principle;  and  the 
condensed  steam  of  a  locomotive  casts  a  shadow  upon  the 
fields  adjacent  to  the  line,  because  the  sunlight  is  wasted 
in  echoes  at  the  innumerable  limiting  surfaces  of  water 
and  air. 

"The  snow  which  falls  upon  high  mountain-eminences 
has  often  a  temperature  far  below  the  freezing-point  of 
water.  Such  snow  is  dry,  and  if  it  always  continued  so 
the  formation  of  a  glacier  from  it  would  be  impossible. 
The  first  action  of  the  summer's  sun  is  to  raise  the  tem- 
perature of  the  superficial  snow  to  32°,  and  afterwards  to 
melt  it,  The  water  thus  formed  percolates  through  the 
colder  mass  underneath,  and  this  I  take  to  be  the  first 
active  agency  in  expelling  the  air  entangled  in  the  snow. 
But  as  the  liquid  trickles  over  the  surfaces  of  granules 
colder  than  itself,  it  is  partially  deposited  in  a  solid  form 
on  the  surfaces,  thus  augmenting  the  size  of  the  granules, 
and  cementing  them  together.  When  the  mass  thus 
formed  is  examined,  the  air  within  it  is  found  as  round 
bubbles.  Now  it  is  manifest  that  the  air  caught  in  the  ir- 
regular interstices  of  the  snow  can  have  no  tendency  to 
assume  this  form  so  long  as  the  snow  remains  solid;  but 
the  process  to  which  I  have  referred — the  saturation  of 
the  lower  portions  of  the  snow  by  the  water  produced  by 
the  melting  of  the  superficial  portions — enables  the  air  to 
form  itself  into  globules,  and  to  give  the  ice  of  the  n£v& 
its  peculiar  character.  Thus  we  see  that,  though  the  sun 
can  not  get  directly  at  the  deeper  portions  of  the  snow, 
by  liquefying  the  upper  layer  he  charges  it  with  heat,  and 
makes  it  a  messenger  to  the  cold  subjacent  mass. 


132  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

"  The  frost  of  the  succeeding  winter  may,  I  think,  or  may 
not,  according  to  circumstances,  penetrate  through  this 
layer,  and  solidify  the  water  which  it  still  retains  in  its 
interstices.  If  the  winter  set  in  with  clear  frosty  weath- 
er, the  penetration  will  probably  take  place  ;  but  if  heavy 
snow  occur  at  the  commencement  of  winter,  thus  throw- 
ing a  protective  covering  over  the  neve,  freezing  to  any 
great  depth  may  be  prevented.  Mr.  Huxley's  idea  seems 
to  be  quite  within  the  range  of  possibility,  that  water- 
cells  may  be  transmitted  from  the  origin  of  the  glacier  to 
its  end,  retaining  their  contents  always  liquid." 

We  have  thus  briefly  explained  the  process  by  which 
the  mountain-snow  changes  its  character,  and,  without  act- 
ually melting  and  again  freezing,  the  clearest  ice  may  be 
formed  from  it,  and  go  on  accumulating,  layer  by  layer,  to 
an  almost  inconceivable  extent. 

I  allude  now  to  mountains  generally,  for  Greenland  is 
not  the  only  ice-factory  of  the  world.  That  country  has 
by  no  means  a  monopoly  of  the  business,  for  nearly  all 
parts  of  the  earth  have  their  great  reservoirs  of  ice  formed 
in  the  same  manner  from  snow  as  the  ice  of  Greenland, 
only  with  this  difference,  that  the  climate  and  the  tern* 
perature  necessary  to  the  formation  of  glaciers  from  snow 
is  higher  above  the  sea-level  in  most  other  places  than 
in  Greenland.  This  climate  and  temperature  are  found 
above  what  is  called  the  "  snow-line  " — that  is  to  say,  a  line 
above  which  the  snow  does  not  disappear  in  the  summer, 
and  is  therefore  perpetual.  At  the  equator  this  snow-line 
is  of  course  higher  than  either  to  the  north  or  south  of 
that  point.  Towards  both  poles  it  descends  steadily. 
For  instance,  on  the  two  great  equatorial  mountains  of 
Chimborazo  and  Popocatapetl,  it  is  about  15,000  feet; 
above  which  all  is  ice  and  snow,  and  below  which  vege- 
tation, beginning  with  an  arctic  type,  passes  through  all 


GLACIERS  AND  KJEBEEQS.  133 

the  stages  of  climate,  until  at  its  base  we  find  the  rich 
vegetation  of  the  tropics.  Frequently  glaciers  from  that 
upper  region  descend  into  the  lower  regions  of  vegetation 
to  a  considerable  distance,  but  they  are  gradually  melted 
away  at  the  end,  and  can  not,  therefore,  go  beyond  a  cer- 
tain line,  terminating  in,  or  rather  changing  from  streams 
of  ice  to  rivers  of  water. 

By  the  time  we  have  gone  so  far  north  as  Greenland  we 
have  discovered  a  great  depression  in  this  snow-line.  In 
latitude  61°  north,  I  have  observed  it  to  be  2400  feet.  I 


have  found  it  to  be  1700  feet  at  latitude  69°;  at  latitude 
78°,  it  was  500 ;  and  at  between  80°  and  82°  the  snow- 
line  appeared  to  touch  the  sea,  having  no  belt  whatever 
for  vegetation. 

The  piling  up  of  these  mountain-snows  is  like  the  proc- 
esses of  a  geological  epoch  in  the  steady  growth  by  deposit. 
There  is  this  difference,  however,  that  ice  formed  in  this 
manner  is  not,  like  rock,  hard  and  unyielding,  but,  like 
putty,  is,  in  a  measure,  ductile.  In  fact,  it  flows  downward, 
and  the  superabundant  accumulations  find  their  way  thus 
to  the  ocean.  It  is  estimated  that  the  snows  of  the  Alps 
would  increase  the  altitude  of  those  mountains  four  thou- 
sand feet  in  a  thousand  years  but  for  this  strange  ductile 
property  of  ice.  As  we  have  before  seen,  an  ice-stream  is, 
in  effect,  a  frozen  river,  flowing  at  a  very  slow,  but  still  at 
a,  very  perceptible  rate.  The  rate  of  flow  in  the  Alps,  va- 


134  THE  LASJD    OF 

riously  estimated  by  different  explorers  and  at  different 
places,  where  there  were  different  degrees  of  descent,  is 
from  six  to  fourteen  inches  daily.  In  Greenland  the  rate, 
as  determined  by  me,  is  about  from  five  to  eight  inches 
daily.  The  Greenland  glaciers  possess  another  marked 
difference  from  those  of  the  Alps.  The  ends  of  the  latter, 
descending  into  a  lower  and  warmer  level,  are  melted  off, 
and  disappear  as  the  end  of  a  tallow  candle  would  disap- 
pear if  held  near  a  hot  stove.  Before  this  takes  place,  the 
ice,  descending  through  the  valley,  conforms  to  all  its  ine- 
qualities, and  the  actual  river  which  ultimately  takes  its 
rise  from  the  glacier  front  does  not  more  readily  mould  it- 
self to  the  rocky  bed  over  which  it  flows — widening  and 
contracting,  deepening  or  shoaling  as  the  river-bed  expands 
and  narrows,  or  increases  and  diminishes  its  declination. 
An  ice-stream,  or  glacier,  like  the  river,  has  therefore  its 
cascades,  its  rapids,  its  broad  lagoons  (so  to  speak),  and  its 
smooth,  steady,  even  flow.  It  carries  rocks  along  with  it 
upon  its  surface  (rocks  which  have  fallen  upon  it  from  the 
cliffs  along  its  sides),  as  the  river  carries  sticks  of  wood ; 
and,  when  the  ice  melts,  these  rocks  fall  in  front,  and,  roll- 
ing down  the  valley,  form  moraines.  But  with  the  Green- 
land glaciers  the  result  is  different.  The  end  of  the  glacier 
never  descends  into  a  level  that  is  warm  enough  to  melt 
away  the  end  of  it,  as  in  the  Alps,  but  it  reaches  the  sea 
in  all  the  glory  of  its  cold  and  crystal  hardness.  When 
this  happens,  its  end  penetrates  the  water,  and  makes  a 
coast-line  of  ice.  The  temperature  of  Greenland,  down 
even  to  the  water-level,  is  too  low  to  allow  of  any  con- 
siderable melting,  but  the  result  is  the  same.  A  fragment 
breaks  off  from  the  glacier  and  floats  away  upon  the  ocean, 
and  is  drifted  to  and  fro  with  the  ocean  currents.  Rocks 
which  may  have  fallen  upon  the  glacier  from  the  cliffs  are 
inclosed  within  it,  or  are  carried  upon  the  top  of  it. 


GLACIERS  AND  ICEBERGS.  135 

The  fragment  which  has  been  broken  off,  as  above  de- 
scribed, is  known  as  an  iceberg.  This  iceberg  is  dissolved 
but  slowly  as  it  drifts  south  with  the  arctic  current,  often 
reaching  as  far  as  the  Banks  of  Newfoundland  before  it 
disappears  entirely.  Often  it  endangers  vessels  crossing 
the  ocean,  and  it  deposits  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea  its 
burden  of  rock  and  sand,  as  it  melts  down..  The  Banks 
of  Newfoundland  have  received  constant  accessions  in  this 
way.  It  was  in  like  manner  that  those  great  boulders 
which  we  find  upon  plains,  like  our  Western  prairies,  were 
deposited  at  a  period  when  they  were  the  bed  of  the 
ocean,  and  icebergs  drifted  that  way  from  the  Arctics. 

And  thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Alpine  glaciers  and 
the  Greenland  glaciers,  although  disappearing  by  different 
direct  processes,  come  to  the  same  final  end — the  mount- 
ain-snows reach  their  natural  home  in  the  sea  at  last. 

Many  of  the  Greenland  glaciers  are  of  amazing  extent. 
There  is  one  sixty  miles  wide.  Its  front  is  in  the  water, 
and  it  is  washed  by  the  waves  like  any  other  coast-line. 
The  rock-cliffs  on  either  side  of  it  are  very  lofty,  from  five 
hundred  to  a  thousand  feet.  The  ice-cliffs  are  from  fifty 
to  three  hundred.  Below  the  surface  of  the  water  this 
wall  of  ice  extends  downward  to  the  bottom,  and  in 
places  the  depth  is  over  two  thousand  feet.  This  great 
glacier,  the  largest  known,  lies  at  the  head  of  Smith's 
Sound,  and  was  discovered  by  Dr.  Kane,  who  called  it  the 
Great  Humboldt  Glacier. 

Another,  twenty  miles  across,  may  be  seen  in  North 
Greenland,  in  the  fiord  of  Aukpadlartok.  This  I  have 
surveyed,  and  shall  have  occasion  to  refer  to  it  hereafter. 
There  are  several  that  are  five  miles  over;  others  two  and 
three,  and  indeed  of  every  size,  down  to  the  very  diminu- 
tive one  that  might  be  called  an  ice  rivulet.  Many  of 
them  have  reached  the  sea,  as  already  stated — some  of 


136  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

them  ages  ago,  others  very  recently ;  others  have  not  yet 
flowed  so  far ;  but  in  all  cases  the  flow  is  steady,  and  the 
accumulation  within  the  inland  reservoir  goes  on.  The 
flow  of  a  glacier  may  be  likened  to  the  great  flood  which 
sweeps  down  the  valley  from  a  broken  dam.  Though  it 
comes  very  slowly,  it  comes  very  surely.  It  is  irresistible. 
It  moulds  itself  to  the  hill,  it  swells  up  over  an  acclivity,  it 
pours  over  a  cliff,  and  pursues  its  course  with  a  strength 
and  impulse  that  is  grand  and  terrible  to  behold.  And  it 
is  not  noiseless,  for  its  movement  is  attended  with  con- 
stant breaks,  sometimes  extending  through  its  entire 
body.  The  sound  occasioned  thereby  is  truly  appalling. 
The  glacier  is,  therefore,  often  an  object  of  real  terror. 
The  whole  region  is,  in  fact,  full  of  startling  wonders  and 
novelties  of  nature.  Its  history  is  replete  with  violent 
convulsions.  Once  those  were  of  fire,  for  the  country 
shows  evidence  of  volcanic  heat ;  now  they  are  of  frost. 
The  Land  of  Desolation  is  worthy  of  more  consideration 
than  it  has  ever  yet  received  from  the  learned  and  curi- 
ous, or  even  the  adventurous. 


THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT.        137 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT. 

IT  is  time  now  that  I  should  recur  again  to  the  Panther, 
which  we  left  steaming  out  of  Ericsfiord. 

When  the  revellers  from  the  Julianashaab  ball  appeared 
after  breakfast  we  were  well  away  at  sea.  Most  of  them 
had  either  forgotten  or  had  never  been  aware  of  the  inten- 
tion of  the  captain  to  sail  so  early  in  the  day.  When, 
however,  they  discovered  where  the  steamer's  head  was 
pointed,  they  were  well  pleased  with  the  sudden  change, 
and  found  a  lively  satisfaction  in  the  prospect  of  new 
fields  for  adventure ;  all  except  the  Prince,  who  was  (or 
at  least  so  affected)  much  grieved  that  no  opportunity  was 
allowed  him  to  go  ashore  after  the  ball.  The  captain 
may,  indeed,  have  anticipated  some  possible  mischief  to 
the  young  gentleman,  and  so  lifted  his  anchor  when  all 
were  sound  asleep.  What,  indeed,  might  possibly  have 
happened  may  be  readily  guessed  from  an  account  of  what 
actually  transpired,  according  to  our  sagaman,  who  wrote 
the  following  description  of  it : 

"  It  was  a  thousand  pities,  sure,  to  wound  a  tender  youth 
in  his  most  tender  spot ;  the  ship  had  sailed  three  hours 
when  first  he  found  that  she  was  steaming  off  at  least  'six 
knot.'  The  youth  was  furious,  vowed  he  would  go  back, 
and  cried,  in  anguish, '  Launch  me  that  kayak.'  The  kayak 
was  the  pilot's,  so  he  failed  to  sacrifice  his  very  wretched 
life ;  then,  after  groaning  once  or  twice,  he  hailed  the 
steward :  '  Here,  man,  as  you  love  your  wife,  go  quick 
and  bring  me  paper,  pen,  and  ink.  I'll  write  a  letter;  then 
my  will,  I  think.' 


138  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

"  Sad  are  these  partings  to  the  virgin  heart — I  mean  the 
heart  that  never  felt  decay ;  when  all  the  life  has  been  the 
sunny  part ;  no  shadows  flung  into  the  gladsome  day  ;  and 
hard,  indeed,  it  was  upon  our  Prince ;  it  was  his  first  af- 
fair, and  made  him  wince.  No  wonder  !  But  the  ink  and 
pen  were  here ;  and  so  our  hero  grew  more  reconciled ; 
he  dashed  away — they  say  it  was  a  tear ;  and  wrote,  and 
wrote,  and  grew  exceeding  wild.  Here's  what  it  was,  and, 
if  you're  so  inclined,  you  may  learn  something  of  a  tor- 
tured mind  : 

" '  Concordia,  dear !  Concordia,  dear !  My  heart  is  with 
thee  on  the  lonely  isle ;  I'm  forced  to  say  adieu  to  thee, 
I  fear,  for  I  am  carried  off;  I  slept  the  while ;  I  did  but 
sleep  that  I  might  dream  of  thee,  and,  sleeping,  off  they 
carried  me  to  sea.  Concordia,  dear !  Concordia,  dear ! 
Thou  only  on  this  earth  my  heart  hast  got.  Oh,  listen  to 
me  while  I  shed  a  tear,  of  which  I  have  shed  enough  to  fill 
a  pot.  I'd  fill  a  dozen  could  I  go  to  thee ;  then  from  this 
lonely  isle  away  we'd  flee,  o'er  the  glad  waters  of  the  deep 
blue  sea;  our  thoughts  quite  boundless,  and  our  hopes 
quite  glad.  Those  seal-skin  breeches !  oh,  Concordia !  they 
are  bewitching,  and  they  make  me  mad ;  and  then  that 
top  -  knot  on  thy  head  so  fair,  I've  yards  of  ribbon  for 
thy  raven  hair.  My  messmates  all,  hard-hearted  fellows 
they !  do  call  me  spooney  when  my  pain  they  see.  Ah  ! 
who  can  tell  my  sufferings,  thou  away  ?  I'll  ever  be  a 
faithful  spoon  to  thee.  My  image  in  thy  bosom  once  in- 
stall, I'll  take  them  then,  ay,  breeches,  boots,  and  all.' 

"  Which,  and  much  more  such  stuff  outlandish,  our  hero 
wrote  unto  his  lady-love ;  doing  it  in  very  bad  Greenland- 
ish;  he'd  billed  and  cooed  with  her  like  turtle-dove; 
learning  thereby  a  string  of  koos  and  kahs,  and  these  he 
emphasized  with  ohs  and  ahs.  A  language  which  all  maid- 
ens understand,  of  each  and  every  nationality ;  you  may 


THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT.        139 

write  Greek  and  Choctaw  with  the  hand ;  a  maid  will 
comprehend  a  sigh,  you  see  ;  and  every  lover,  be  he  green 
as  grass,  will  wisely  sigh,  if  he  would  catch  his  lass. 

"The  letter  written,  then  the  pilot  went,  bearing  the 
missive  with  abundant  warning,  to  take  it  safe  and  go 
where  he  was  sent,  and  give  it  to  the  maiden  in  the  morn- 
ing. It  must  have  touched  her,  Heaven  only  knows !  the 
steamer  steamed  away ;  and  thus  it  goes ! — The  tender- 
hearted must  be  torn  away — sometimes  it  is e  stern  parient,' 
sometimes  steam.  In  this  particular  case  you'd  surely  say, 
'  The  Prince  is  certain  now  to  kick  the  beam.'  Oh  no,  not 
he !  The  youth  but  went  below,  slept,  woke,  then  cried, 
'  Now  for  another  go  !' " 

And  another  "  go  "  he  had,  and  we  all  had,  sure  enough, 
but  of  a  very  different  character  from  the  Julianashaab 
«go." 

By  keeping  well  inside  the  islands,  which  almost  every- 
where form  a  barrier  along  the  Greenland  coast,  we  man- 
aged to  escape,  in  a  great  measure,  the  ice  which  had  so 
much  annoyed  and  alarmed  us  when  we  first  "made"  the 
Land  of  Desolation.  Towards  evening,  our  pilot,  who  had 
been  on  the  bridge  most  of  the  day,  approached  the  cap- 
tain, and  said : 

"  Captain,  you  see  ?" 

"  Yes,"  said  the  captain. 

"  Two  icebergs  there — go  between." 

"  Yes,"  said  the  captain. 

"Starboard  then" — explaining  further  the  route  into 
the  port — "no,  hit  rock — go  for  iceberg — port,  no  deep 
water  —  starboard,  plenty  ice  —  port,  small  —  starboard, 
plenty — let  go — Kraksimeut — you  see  ?" 

"  Yes,  pilot,"  said  the  captain, "  certainly,  clear  as  mud ;" 
then,  addressing  himself  to  another  quarter,  he  cried  out, 
"For'ad,  there!" 


140  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

"Ay,  ay,  sir." 

"  Lay  out  on  the  jib-boom  and  keep  a  sharp  look-out  for 
rocks.  Stand  by  to  heave  the  lead." 

"Ay,  ay,  sir." 

And  now,  what  with  dodging  first  one  way  and  then 
the  other,  and  with  taking  the  ice  first  on  one  bow  and 
then  on  the  other,  with  shaving  the  rocks  most  uncom- 
fortably close,  they  managed,  between  the  pilot  and  the 
captain,  to  give  the  Panther  a  pretty  lively  time  of  it,  un- 
til we  had  finally  come  into  a  very  narrow  basin  of  water, 
where,  in  apparent  danger  of  running  our  jib-boom  into  a 
solitary  house,  the  order  was  given  to  "  let  go" — and  we 
were  at  anchor  in  the  harbor  of  Kraksimeut. 

There  was  a  great  number  of  people  about  the  solitary 
house.  So  far  as  appearances  went,  Kraksimeut  com- 
prised this  one  house  only,  and  it  was  but  one  story  high. 
Over  it  floated  a  Danish  flag  about  the  size  of  a  pocket- 
handkerchief. 

"  My  house,"  said  our  pilot.  "  Governor's  house,  Kraksi- 
meut— me  Governor." 

Our  pilot  was  Peter  Motzfeldt,  already  mentioned  in 
a  previous  chapter ;  and  a  right  noble  fellow  is  Peter  Motz- 
feldt, if  he  does  live  in  a  solitary  house,  and  is  governor  of 
Kraksimeut. 

Kraksimeut  stands  upon  a  very  small  island,  on  the 
very  outer  extremity  of  the  dividing  ridge  between  the 
fiord  which  we  had  left  and  the  fiord  for  which  we  were 
bound.  In  order  to  reach  it,  we  have  sailed  north-west ; 
to  reach  our  next  halting-place  in  the  other  fiord,  we  are 
to  sail  north-east.  It  is  a  good  half-way  station,  and  we 
resolve  to  spend  the  night  there. 

Peter  Motzfeldt  invites  us  ashore,  and  ashore  we  go  to 
the  government-house.  The  people  we  see  are  like  those 
of  Julianashaab ;  they  smell  of  fish  exceedingly.  There  is 


THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT.        141 

not  another  white  man  except  Peter  Motzfeldt.  His  wife 
is  there,  but  she  is  a  native,  and  has  the  inevitable  native 
boots,  and  seal-skin  pantaloons,  and  short  jacket,  and  horn- 
like top-knot  of  hair,  tied  about  with  a  profuse  quantity 
of  ribbons.  Peter  Motzfeldt's  twenty  odd  children  are 
there,  including  the  two  boat-loads  heretofore  mentionedt 
who  had  gone  down  to  Julianashaab  to  see  the  sights,  and 
have  returned  in  anticipation  of  our  arrival. 

The  scenery  around  this  solitary  house  is  dreary  enough ; 
there  are  only  faint  traces  of  vegetation  in  the  crevasses 
of  the  rocks,  and  there  is  a  glimpse  of  water  only  to  be 
seen  here  and  there  among  the  icebergs  and  islands ;  but 
there  is  a  golden  sky  above  the  setting  sun,  and  golden 
splendors  dropped  from  heaven  upon  the  sparkling  jewelry 
of  the  sea. 

I  took  a  walk  about  the  island,  and  came  back  to  the 
solitary  house,  after  all  my  comrades  had  assembled  there, 
to  encounter  a  great  surprise.  Instead  of  finding  this  only 
white  inhabitant  of  the  place 

"Steeped  in  poverty  to  the  very  lips," 

he  was  rejoicing  in  abundance.  Eatables  and  drinkables 
were  on  the  table  in  great  profusion ;  pipes,  tobacco,  and 
even  cigars,  were  circulating  freely,  and  a  livelier  party 
than  that  which  greeted  me  on  my  arrival  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  imagine.  They  had  literally  taken  possession  of 
all  there  was  to  see  of  Kraksimeut,  including  Motzfeldt 
himself,  whose  genial  face  beamed  upon  me  through  the 
mists  which  arose  from  a  steaming  punch-bowl ;  and,  as 
he  stretched  out  a  hand  to  give  me  welcome,  he  bowled 
down  at  least  half  a  dozen  bottles. 

"Have  a  cigar?"  said  the  Prince,  passing  along  a  box 
out  of  a  smoky  cloud.  "  Capital  Havanas  !  plenty  of  the 
same  sort  left." 


142  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

The  Prince  was  clearly  quite  at  home,  as  usual,  and  was 
already  looking  out  generally  for  the  public  pleasures ;  for 
he  continued : 

"Lively  times  expected.  Old  chap  there  has  sent  for 
girls,  and  we're  to  have  a  dance." 

And  sure  enough  he  had ;  for  the  girls  came  streaming 
in  presently,  and  there  was  a  repetition  of  the  Julianas- 
haab  "  break-down  "  (I  know  no  better  title  by  which  to 
distinguish  it).  Of  course,  the  Prince  managed  to  pick 
out  the  prettiest  girl,  who  had  the  advantage  of  being  the 
daughter  of  Motzfeldt,  and,  by  a  pleasant  coincidence,  bore 
also  the  name  of  Concordia.  This  one  had  black  hair  and 
eyes,  however.  But,  since  there  did  not  appear  to  be  any 
Marcus  to  torment,  the  young  gentleman  clearly  preferred 
the  girl  (with  the  auburn  hair)  he  had  left  behind  him. 

Kraksimeut  is  one  of  the  dozen  principal  outposts  of  the 
Julianashaab  district,  and  the  most  remote  one  on  the 
north ;  and  it  is,  besides,  one  of  the  most  productive.  Its 
products  are  exclusively  (if  we  except  a  little  eider-down), 
the  skins  and  blubber  of  seals;  and  during  the  season  it 
is,  according  to  all  accounts,  a  very  lively  place.  Peter 
Motzfeldt  gets  his  pay  out  of  the  colony's  production, 
upon  which  he  receives  five  per  cent.  This,  added  to  his 
salary  (one  hundred  Danish  dollars),  makes  his  income  over 
a  thousand  dollars  of  that  money  annually,  and  sometimes 
reaches  fifteen  hundred,  which  equals  about  seven  hundred 
and  fifty  of  ours.  Upon  this  he  has  lived  happily,  as  he 
says,  and  I  do  not  doubt  it,  for  fifty  years.  He  has  raised 
two  families,  and  provides  now  for  twenty-four  persons, 
himself  and  wife  included.  This  wife  is  a  most  tidy  per- 
son, a  native,  with  a  slight  mixture  of  Danish  blood,  and 
dresses  always  in  the  native  costume.  Indeed,  there  is 
not,  and  never  was,  a  petticoat  in  Kraksimeut.  From 
pitying  Peter  Motzfeldt,  as  I  did  at  first,  I  began  in  the 


THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT.        143 

end  to  wonder  whether  he  was  not  a  most  sensible  fellow 
after  all,  when  I  discovered  that  his  income  was  more  than 
sufficient  for  his  needs,  and  that  even,  although  his  family 
was  large,  he  lacked  for  nothing  that  he  wished  to  send 
for  from  Copenhagen.  Really,  it  is  not  so  bad  after  all,  to 
be  the  solitary  white  man,  in  a  solitary  house,  on  a  soli- 
tary island. 

Besides  the  Motzfeldt  family,  there  are  about  forty  other 
inhabitants,  all  natives,  who  live  in  the  usual  native  huts, 
that  are  scarcely  distinguishable  in  the  general  waste  of 
rock. 

I  found  that  an  American  had  been  at  Kraksimeut  be- 
fore, and  that  Motzfeldt  preserved  the  most  lively  recol- 
lection of  the  "Americana,"  who  had  taught  him  the  lit- 
tle English  he  knew,  and  instructed  him  to  sing  "  Yank 
Doodle  "  and  "  Hail  Columby,"  which  he  repeated  for  us 
with  variations  not  originally  made  and  provided.  This 
American  was  Colonel  Shaffner,  who  some  years  ago,  after 
the  first  failure  of  the  Atlantic  Cable,  interested  himself 
to  establish  a  line  by  way  of  the  Faroe  Islands,  Iceland, 
Greenland,  and  Labrador;  and  it  was  a  pity  that  his 
scheme  was  impossible  of  success.  You  would  think  so  at 
least  if  you  heard  Peter  Motzfeldt  praise  him  ;  and  I  doubt 
not  that  he  well  deserved  it  all,  for  there  have  been  few 
more  spirited  enterprises  set  on  foot  this  many  a  day.  I 
say  it  was  impossible  of  success ;  not  that  the  cable  might 
not  be  laid  and  the  shore-end  secured,  but  it  would  be 
simply  absurd  to  think  of  keeping  it  in  a  sea  where  ice- 
bergs ground  in  two  or  three  hundred  fathoms  water. 

On  board  the  steamship  Panther  there  was  a  man,  com- 
mon enough  in  point  of  rank,  but  the  like  of  which  never 
was  seen  before  with  respect  to  qualities.  He  was  the 
mate.  Why  he  was  ever  put  there  in  that  capacity,  unless 
it  was  to  "  try  our  virtue  by  affliction,"  I  can  not  imagine. 


144  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

He  would  beat  a  "  reformer "  any  day  for  wrong-headed- 
ness,  or  a  discontented  donkey  for  obstinacy.  As  if  these 
qualities  were  not  enough,  he  was  afflicted  with  the  curi- 
osity of  a  magpie.  But  the  particular  direction  of  his 
curiosity  was  aquatic.  He  was  great  on  finding  bottom. 
Upon  one  occasion  he  tried  to  find  it  by  dropping  over- 
board a  gun ;  on  another  he  got  into  a  kayak  and  shoved 
off  from  the  ship's  side,  to  find  himself  very  quickly  head 
downward,  with  the  boat  fast  to  his  heels ;  and  he  would 
have  been  as  certain  of  drowning  as  if  he  had  undertaken 
to  swim  with  his  feet  fast  to  a  bladder,  had  his  head  not 
struck  bottom,  where  luckily  there  was  a  lot  of  sea-weed, 
which  he  grasped  and  drew  himself  out  among  the  shells 
and  slime ;  there  he  got  a  footing,  and,  the  water  being 
shoal,  he  came  right  side  up,  with  a  great  deal  of  water 
and  very  little  breath  in  him.  Had  his  disposition  to  find 
the  bottom  with  the  top  of  his  head  terminated  there,  it 
would  have  been  well;  but  unhappily  his  weakness  ex- 
tended to  the  Panther's  keel.  If  there  was  the  remotest 
chance  of  putting  her  on  the  rocks  at  any  time,  he  was 
sure  to  make  the  effort.  And  he  was,  moreover,  very  sly. 
He  always  waited  until  the  captain  was  down  below  or 
had  gone  ashore,  before  he  gave  his  mind  to  it.  At  Krak- 
simeut,  he  waited  until  the  captain  was  well  enveloped  in 
a  cloud  of  smoke,  in  the  house  of  Peter  Motzfeldt,  before 
he  tried  the  depth  of  the  water  in  the  harbor.  Slacking 
up  a  rope,  or  neglecting  to  put  out  one,  it  matters  not 
which,  he  let  the  Panther  swing  with  the  tide,  and  her 
stern  slid  up  as  nicely  on  a  rock  as  if  she  were  coming  to 
her  bearings  in  a  dry-dock.  This  astonishing  mate  then, 
with  great  apparent  satisfaction,  looked  over  the  stern, 
and  amidst  the  mud  and  sea-weed,  which  had  been  loos- 
ened, and  which  was  bubbling  up  about  the  rudder-post, 
there  read  XIV.;  and  thus  he  had  found  the  depth  of 


THE  SOLITARY  HOUSE  OF  PETER  MOTZFELDT.        145 

Kraksimeut  harbor,  and  was  satisfied.  Then  he  smoked 
his  pipe  while  waiting  for  the  water  to  fall ;  and  we  came 
on  board  to  find  the  Panther's  stern  going  steadily  out  of 
the  sea,  with  great  danger  of  breaking  her  unfortunate 
back.  Meanwhile  the  mate  was  never  before  known  to  be 
in  such  capital  spirits. 

Fortunately,  as  it  happened,  the  Panther  was  not  mate- 
rially damaged,  owing  to  her  amazing  strength  of  back- 
bone; but  we  were  detained  nearly  a  whole  tide  beyond 
our  time.  But  when  at  length  under  way,  we  had  a  splen- 
did sail  among  the  islands,  until  we  struck  the  open  water 
of  the  fiord  of  Sermitsialik,  when  we  stood  fairly  up  mid- 
way between  its  lofty  banks,  directly  for  the  glacier. 

For  a  time  we  could  not  see  the  object  that  our  eyes  so 
eagerly  sought,  owing  to  a  bend  in  the  fiord,  but,  passing 
this,  a  great  long  line  of  whiteness  came  gradually  out 
against  the  sky,  and  beneath  it  dropped  a  white  curtain 
to  the  sea.  As  we  proceeded  this  seeming  curtain  be- 
came a  solid  wall. 

G 


146  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE      GLACIER. 

How  shall  I  describe  the  scene  which  steadily  opened 
to  us  as  we  steamed  rapidly  up  the  fiord. 

Imagine  it !  The  fiord  is  two  miles  wide ;  the  valley 
beyond  is  of  corresponding  width,  and  the  glacier  fills  it 
perfectly.  How  thick  it  is,  of  course,  can  not  be  told,  but 
hundreds  of  feet  it  must  be  everywhere ;  it  is  probably 
from  one  to  two  thousand  feet  in  many  places.  The  banks 
of  the  fiord  continued  to  be  the  banks  of  the  glacier  for 
about  ten  miles,  gradually  vanishing  to  a  wedge-like 
point,  and  merging  then  into  the  great  mer  de  glace, 
which,  expanding  to  the  right  and  left  above  the  highest 
hills,  carries  the  eye  away  upon  its  boundless  surface  as 
upon  the  ocean. 

At  length  the  inclined  plane  was  lost;  the  distant  line 
of  the  mer  de  glace  wras  lost  also,  and  we  were  beneath  a 
line  of  ice-cliffs  from  one  to  two  hundred  feet  high,  as 
clear  as  the  purest  crystal,  and  emblazoned  with  all  the 
hues  of  heaven. 

A  cold  shudder  crept  over  me  as  the  vessel  steamed  in 
close  to  the  front  of  this  great  reservoir  of  frost.  The 
sound  of  falling  waters  filled  the  air,  and  ever  and  anon 
deep  sounds,  which  seemed  like  convulsions  of  the  earth, 
were  emitted  from  it.  The  falling  waters  were  of  melted 
snow  and  ice  from  the  surface  of  the  glacier,  which,  gather- 
ing into  streams  of  considerable  size,  leaped  over  the  cliffs, 
and  sent  a  cloud  of  spray  floating  away  upon  the  air  to  re- 
solve the  sun's  rays,  giving  back  to  the  eye  the  fluttering 


THE  GLACIER.  149 

fragment  of  a  rainbow.  The  sounds  were  occasioned  by 
the  movement  of  the  glacier  in  its  bed,  and  the  resulting 
chasms  which  opened  from  time  to  time  in  the  ice. 

We  probably  enjoyed  here  an  opportunity  such  as  was 
never  enjoyed  by  any  previous  explorer.  I  know  of  no 
glacier  accessible  as  this  is,  for  the  reason  that  the  fiords 
are  interrupted  either  with  islands  or  shoals,  which,  by 
preventing  the  free  discharge  of  the  icebergs  that  break 
from  the  glacier  front,  render  the  navigation  of  the  waters 
quite  impossible,  even  to  a  boat.  Such  is  the  character 
of  the  glacier  of  Jacobshavn,  in  Disco  Bay,  North  Green- 
land, which  I  have  made  the  most  strenuous  efforts  to  as- 
cend, and  which  is  crowded  with  a  perfect  wilderness  of 
icebergs  for  the  space  of  nearly  thirty  miles,  often  being 
so  tightly  packed  together  as  to  be  scarcely  distinguisha- 
ble from  the  surface  of  the  glacier  itself,  even  when  one 
looks  down  upon  the  fiord  from  an  elevation  of  a  thou- 
sand feet. 

But  the  fiord  of  Sermitsialik  presents  no  such  embar- 
rassing feature.  The  water  steadily  deepens  from  the 
glacier  front  (where  in  one  place  it  is  270  fathoms)  to- 
wards the  sea;  and  the  current  being  rapid,  owing  to 
causes  which  I  shall  presently  have  occasion  to  explain, 
the  icebergs  float  away  as  fast  as  formed.  While  coming 
up,  we  passed  several  of  large  and  many  of  small  size,  but 
none  of  them  were  aground,  and  all  were  hurrying  out  to 
the  ocean,  as  if  in  haste  to  mingle  their  crystal  particles 
with  the  rolling  waves,  and  once  more  enjoy  the  freedom 
of  the  boundless  sea. 

We  approached  the  glacier  to  the  left,  and  when  so  near 
that  we  had  barely  more  than  room  to  wheel  about  we 
changed  our  course,  and  slowly  steamed  over  to  the  oppo- 
site side,  a  distance,  as  I  have  before  observed,  of  nearly 
two  miles. 


150  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

I  have  spoken  of  the  glacier  front  as  a  wall,  a  cliff,  and 
a  coast-line.  As  a  coast-line  it  is  winding;  as  a  wall  or" 
cliff  it  is  perfectly  vertical;  but  it  is  far  from  smooth. 
On  the  contrary,  it  presents  the  most  fantastic  collection 
of  forms  that  can  be  conceived  of — caves  that  are  ap- 
parently limitless,  peaks  like  church  spires  in  symmetry, 
Gothic  arches,  clefts  that  wind  away  until  they  are  lost  in 
deep  blue.  And  in  this  blue  we  see  the  most  perfect  of 
all  transparent  hues,  changing  too  with  every  moment, 
and  subtle  as  the  colors  of  the  opal.  Talk  of  painting  it ! 
the  "  light  of  a  dark  eye  in  woman  "  would  not  be  more 
difficult.  The  green  of  the  caves  is  not  less  subtle,  nor 
less  beautiful.  This  green  is  observed  wherever  the  ice 
overhangs  the  water.  In  the  sunlight  the  surface  is  pure 
white,  except  where  there  has  occurred  a  recent  fracture ; 
and  the  effect  is  that  of  the  most  delicate  satin,  in  all  its 
changes  of  surface,  produced  by  the  different  angles  in 
which  the  light  is  reflected  to  the  eye. 

We  enjoyed  a  most  excellent  opportunity  of  observing 
all  these  phenomena  while  passing  over,  as  we  went  only 
at  half  speed,  and  spent  almost  an  hour  in  reaching  the  op- 
posite side.  Near  the  centre,  and  not  far  from  the  front 
of  the  glacier,  we  found  the  deepest  water,  the  color  of 
which  changed,  soon  after  passing  the  centre,  from  a  light 
green  to  a  dirty  brown.  The  cause  of  this  was  soon  ex- 
plained. The  eastern  side  of  the  valley,  in  which  the  gla- 
cier rests,  is  much  deeper  than  the  other  side,  and  the 
waters  from  the  surface  of  the  mer  de  glace,  and  the  gla- 
cier itself,  which  find  their  way  down  through  the  chasms, 
gather  in  the  deepest  portion  of  the  valley,  and,  rushing 
on  over  the  rocks  beneath  the  ice,  reach,  finally,  the  front 
of  the  glacier,  where  they  bubble  up  like  a  huge,  seething 
caldron — a  Stygian  pool  of  fearful  aspect.  This  muddy 
water  discolors  that  side  of  the  fiord  all  the  way  to  the 


THE  GLACIER.  151 

sea;  a  circumstance  which  I  was  quite  at  a  loss  to  ac- 
count for  until  I  had  actually  witnessed  the  cause  of  it, 
and  seen  the  Panther  carried,  by  the  force  of  the  current, 
bodily  off  from  the  glacier  against  the  action  of  her  helm. 

I  have  mentioned  the  irregularity  of  the  line  of  the 
glacier  front.  It  presented  numerous  projecting  angles. 
Near  the  centre,  it  forms  almost  a  right  angle.  Thus  do 
we  observe  how  much  more  rapidly  the  centre  of  the  gla- 
cier moves  than  its  sides. 

Having  reached  the  southern  shore,  we  discovered  the 
water  to  shoal  very  rapidly  at  thirty  fathoms  from  the 
rocks,  showing  that  there  was  a  wide  shelf  there ;  and, 
upon  ascertaining  that  it  was  good  holding-ground,  and 
finding  nineteen  fathoms,  we  anchored,  and  swung  into 
the  stream,  which  was  there  found  to  flow  at  the  rate  of 
four  knots,  thus  accounting  for  our  inability  to  cross  over 
without  drifting  away  from  the  glacier.  Our  anchorage 
was  a  hundred  fathoms  only  from  the  ice-cliff,  and  this 
rising  two  hundred  feet  above  the  surface  of  the  water, 
it  seemed,  at  that  short  distance,  to  be  hanging  almost 
over  us.  To  one  at  all  familiar  with  the  tricks  of  gla- 
ciers it  was  evident,  from  the  first,  that  the  situation  was 
one  of  danger.  But  the  captain,  who  was  solely  responsi- 
ble for  the  vessel,  appeared  to  like  his  holding-ground, 
which  was  thick  mud,  and  said  that  if  we  were  going  to 
stay  at  the  glacier,  there's  where  the  Panther  must  con- 
tinue, for  there  was  no  other  anchorage,  as  he  could  see. 
It  was  accordingly  determined  to  take  the  risks,  such  as 
they  might  be,  and  hold  on  there  until  the  morning,  at 
the  least. 

We  went  ashore  after  supper  and,  climbing  over  the 
rugged  rocks,  ascended  to  the  summit  of  a  hill  twelve 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea,  and  saw  the  sun  go  down  be- 
hind the  mountains;  and  against  the  brightness  of  the 


152  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

sky,  in  the  lingering  twilight,  we  beheld  the  great  ice-sea 
of  Greenland,  lighted  with  the  gorgeous  tintings  of  the 
clouds.  Oh,  what  a  sight  it  was  ! — that  desert  waste — its 
cold,  hard  surface  glittering  with  a  borrowed  splendor, 
and  taking  to  itself  the  robes  of  heaven,  as  if  to  cheat  the 
memory  of  its  right  to  hold  it  as  the  very  type  of  what 
might  ever  bear  the  name  of  Desolate. 


GROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  153 


CHAPTER  V. 

CROSSING  THE  GLACIER. 

THE  night  did  not  prove  promising  for  the  safety  of  the 
Panther.  At  intervals  alarming  sounds  proceeded  from 
the  glacier,  and  now  and  then  a  quick  sharp  crack,  fol- 
lowed by  a  heavy  thud,  would  tell  us  that  a  mass  had 
split  from  it  and  fallen  to  the  sea,  which  in  the  morning 
was  covered  with  small  fragments  that  had  been  thus  dis- 
engaged ;  and  masses,  some  of  them  of  considerable  size, 
were  drifting  past  the  vessel  with  the  current. 

At  an  early  hour  I  set  out  to  cross  the  fiord,  accompa- 
nied by  the  captain,  with  the  purpose  of  seeking  a  har- 
bor, or  at  least  a  more  safe  anchorage.  Owing  to  the 
loose  ice,  the  passage  was  not  accomplished  without  diffi- 
culty. In  many  places  the  boat  could  not  be  propelled 
with  oars,  and  we  were  obliged  to  push  our  way  along  by 
main  force,  using  the  boat-hooks  and  the  oars  as  poles. 

The  scene  had  greatly  changed  in  every  respect  from 
the  day  before.  Besides  the  fragments  of  ice  upon  the 
sea  that  had  been  broken  off  during  the  night,  the  sky 
was  leaden,  and  there  was  a  perfect  absence  of  color 
everywhere.  The  ice  was  a  dull  cold  gray,  the  atmos- 
phere was  chilly,  and,  although  our  labors  were  by  no 
means  light,  overcoats  were  not  uncomfortably  warm. 
The  sun  had  scarcely  risen  above  the  hills  when  we 
reached  our  destination,  where  we  were  fortunate  enough 
to  find  a  good  anchoring-ground,  with  plenty  of  room  to 
swing,  in  a  bay  where  there  was  no  current  and  very 
little  ice.  There  being  only  five  fathoms  water,  there  was 

G2 


154  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

no  chance  of  any  large  pieces  of  ice  coming  down  upon 
us.  Accordingly  it  was  determined  to  shift  our  ground; 
but,  since  we  had  come  so  far,  we  concluded  that  we  would 
go  farther ;  and  so  we  landed,  to  find  ourselves  upon  a 
green  slope,  with  the  side  of  the  glacier  to  our  right,  a 
cliff  to  our  left,  and  a  gorge  in  front.  Over  the  green 
slope  we  walked  half  a  mile,  then  through  the  gorge  a  mile 
farther ;  and,  having  arrived  at  this  point,  we  concluded 
to  cross  the  glacier,  and  to  return  to  the  opposite  side  of 
the  fiord  on  foot  rather  than  by  boat.  So  we  sent  back 
our  crew  and  set  out  upon  a  hazardous  adventure. 

The  captain,  always  ready  for  any  proposition  of  an  ad- 
venturous nature,  had  quickly  responded  to  my  own  de- 
sires ;  in  fact,  he  was  the  only  man  on  board  who  was  al- 
ways prepared  for  whatever  might  turn  up.  Such  anoth- 
er captain  there  never  was,  as  I  believe.  Brave  almost  to 
temerity  ;  yet,  possessing  excellent  judgment,  he  was  just 
the  man  to  get  into  a  difficulty,  and  the  very  man  to  get 
out  of  it.  Although  only  twenty-five  years  old,  he  had, 
nevertheless,  been  eight  years  in  command  of  one  sort  of 
craft  or  another,  and  was  a  thorough  sailor.  Buoyant 
and  clever  besides,  he  was  always  good  company ;  but  on 
a  journey  his  indefatigable  zeal  and  long  legs  were  apt  to 
lead  his  companions  a  lively  race. 

We  had  no  difficulty  in  climbing  the  side  of  the  glacier, 
at  a  point  where  the  slope  was  almost  thirty  degrees. 
The  ice  here  contained  much  foreign  matter — stones  and 
sand — which  deprived  it  entirely  of  a  slippery  character. 
In  a  few  minutes  we  were  on  the  summit,  and  a  dreary 
scene  it  was  that  met  us  there.  Imagine  the  rapids  above 
Niagara  Falls  congealed  to  the  very  bottom;  the  falls 
and  river  frozen  everywhere,  and  Lake  Erie  solid:  then 
imagine  the  banks  above  the  falls  lofty  like  those  below, 
and  yourself  standing  oh  the  rapids.  Imagine  Lake  Erie 


CROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  155 

so  near  that  you  can  see  its  frozen  surface,  and  you  have, 
on  a  small  scale,  the  mer  de  glace  which  we  saw  when 
looking  at  the  glacier.  The  frozen  rapids  are  the  glacier 
itself;  the  falls  below,  the  glacier's  front  (with  the  horse- 
shoe reversed) ;  the  river  sweeping  down  to  Lake  Ontario 
is  the  fiord ;  and  Ontario  itself  the  ocean,  into  which  the 
icebergs  drift  that  break  away  from  the  glacier,  and  go 
off  with  the  current. 

There  is  this  great  difference,  however — the  river,  from 
bank  to  bank,  is  straight  upon  the  surface,  while  the  gla- 
cier curves.  The  accompanying  cuts  will  better  illustrate 
my  meaning. 


It  was  along  the  gorge  formed  by  the  curve  of  the  gla- 
cier on  the  one  side,  and  the  slope  of  the  land  on  the  ot/h- 
er,  that  we  made  our  way  up  from  the  sea,  all  except  the 
first  half  mile,  which,  as  I  have  said  before,  was  over  a 
green  slope,  formed  by  the  lofty  land  breaking  away  and 
leaving  a  beautiful  spot  which  is  one  day  destined  to  be 
completely  covered  with  the  ice-flood.  And  it  was  such 
a  beautiful  spot  that  I  could  but  regret  its  ultimate  blot- 
ting out ;  for,  notwithstanding  the  wall  of  ice  that  was  so 
close  to  it,  it  was  covered  with  thick  brush-wood,  consist- 
ing of  birch,  dwarf- willow,  and  juniper;  among  which 
were  matted  tufts  of  heather,  crake-berry,  and  whortle- 
berry ;  and  many  bright  flowers  were  here  and  there  scat- 
tered over  a  rich  turf  of  grass  and  moss.  A  greater  con- 
trast could  hardly  be  imagined  than  between  this  spot  of 
green  which  we  had  left  and  the  glacier  upon  which  we 
stood. 


!$<>  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Here  the  glacier  is  two  and  a  half  miles  wide.  To  cross 
it  was  no  easy  matter;  nor  was  the  effort  without  dan- 
ger, for  it  was  full  of  cracks,  into  which  we  were  constant- 
ly in  dread  of  falling  from  the  slippery  ridges  which  sep- 
arated them.  These  cracks,  or  crevasses,  were,  in  a  gen- 
eral way,  parallel,  running  inward  and  upward  from  the 
shore  at  angles  varying  with  the  locality,  but  averaging 
about  forty  degrees.  In  places  they  were  very  near  to- 
gether, being  separated  by  only  a  few  yards;  in  other 
places  they  were  twenty  or  thirty  yards  apart.  But  they 
were  continually  running  into  and  crossing  each  other, 
although  pursuing  a  general  sameness  of  direction.  It 
was  this  circumstance  that  gave  to  our  journey  its  dan- 
gerous character;  for  as  we  followed  the  ridges  in  their 
course  inward  and  upward  we  were,  from  time  to  time, 
brought  to  a  stand  at  a  sharp  point  where  the  two  chasms 
united.  We  had  then  to  spring  over  an  unfathomable 
abyss,  or  to  retrace  our  steps  and  seek  a  better  track. 
Sometimes  we  did  the  one,  sometimes  the  other.  Lucki- 
ly we  were  both  sure  of  foot ;  yet  the  leaps  were  often 
such  as  could  only  have  been  made  under  the  spur  of  cu- 
riosity to  see,  or  the  no  less  common  one  of  unwillingness 
to  abandon  an  undertaking. 

Towards  the  middle  the  travelling  became  better.  Here, 
for  the  space  of  a  couple  of  miles,  there  was  a  dead  level, 
and  the  ice  was  very  little  disturbed  ;  while  above,  where 
the  glacier  appeared  to  have  poured  over  a  precipice,  or 
at  least  down  a  very  rapid  descent,  there  was  the  most 
wonderful  jumble  that  can  be  conceived  of.  The  crevas- 
ses there  ran  in  every  direction,  though  the  prevailing  one 
was,  as  in  other  places^  inward  and  upward.  The  ice  ap- 
peared at  one  point  to  have  been  let  down  by  successive 
stages,  forming  a  series  of  terraces,  or  escalades,  which 
might  be  likened  to  the  steps  of  some  giant  temple.  In- 


CROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  157 

deed,  it  was  a  stairway  befitting  the  grand  palaces  of  na- 
ture which  lie  away  upon  the  mountain-tops  beyond. 

I  never  tread  these  ice-wildernesses  without  awe.  One 
sees  so  much,  and  yet  so  little.  There  is  nothing  to  with- 
draw the  attention  from  one  sole  manifestation  of  nature. 
In  other  places  as  in  the  forest,  where  there  is  life  in  va- 
rious forms ;  by  the  sea-shore,  where  there  is  perceptible 
movement,  and  at  all  times  something  suggestive  of  life ; 
anywhere,  indeed,  almost,  the  thoughts  are  not  concen- 
trated upon  one,  and  only  one,  peculiar  force.  There  is 
something  almost  terrible  in  this  boundless  desolation. 
God  seems  nearer  in  these  deserts ;  His  laws,  which  never 
change,  are  not  hidden  from  the  consciousness  by  delight- 
ed senses  ;  and  the  mind  is  there  inspired  with  a  lofty 
emotion  when  contemplating  the  simple  grandeur  of  His 
handiwork. 

I  was  particularly  impressed  on  the  present  occasion. 
The  groaning  of  the  mighty  river  of  ice,  which  could  not 
have  been  less  than  a  thousand  feet  in  depth,  was  con- 
stant, and  proceeded  from  every  side;  even  beneath  my 
feet  there  seemed  to  be  an  uneasy  trembling;  and  how 
much  soever  I  might  have  been  alarmed,  I  would  not 
have  been  surprised  had  a  yawning  chasm  opened  beside 
me  or  underneath  me  at  any  moment. 

These  deep  voices  of  the  ice  were,  however,  not  the 
only  sounds  that  greeted  the  ear;  for  rivulets  meandered 
here  and  there  over  the  icy  plain.  In  one  place  many  of 
these  uniting  formed  a  considerable  stream,  that  ultimately 
found  a  crack  into  which  it  fell  roaring  and  hissing  down 
through  all  the  vast  depth  of  ice  to  the  glacier's  bed,  there 
to  help  swell  the  stream  which,  as  before  described,  pours 
out  from  beneath  the  glacier  into  the  fiord. 

By  this  time  the  sun  was  well  up,  and  the  day  was 
growing  warm.  Even  here,  upon  the  summit  of  the  gla- 


158  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

cier,  the  temperature  was  not  at  all  chilly  or  uncomforta- 
ble. The  ice  and  snow  were  melting  rapidly,  and  our  in- 
convenience was  rather  from  dampness  than  from  cold, 
for  we  were  often,  in  our  efforts  to  get  along,  compelled 
to  crawl  upon  all-fours,  or  even  flat  upon  our  bellies,  to 
get  over  treacherous  places,  so  that  our  clothing  was  soon 
thoroughly  water-soaked. 

In  crossing  the  middle  part  of  the  glacier  we  experi- 
enced little  difficulty ;  but  when  we  had  begun  to  descend 
towards  the  opposite  shore  from  where  we  had  started, 
our  troubles  of  the  beginning  were  renewed,  and  even 
magnified.  It  became  often  a  serious  question  whether 
we  could  proceed  at  all — whether  we  would  not,  after  all 
our  labor,  be  compelled  to  return.  The  crevasses  were 
then  of  great  width,  much  too  wide  for  us  to  spring  over, 
and,  after  winding  to  and  fro,  springing  here  and  there, 
we  were  several  times  forced  to  take  our  leaps  over  again 
on  the  backward  track,  as  there  was  no  place  to  be  found 
where  a  leap  forward  seemed  possible.  At  length,  as  we 
neared  the  shore,  the  case  became  desperate.  After  much 
effort  we  found  •  ourselves  out  upon  a  very  acute  angle, 
with  a  deep  chasm  on  each  side.  Two  crevasses  had  here 
crossed ;  but  from  the  two  sharp  points  there  appeared  to 
be  a  bridge,  or  at  least  a  connecting  link.  When  the 
cracks  were  formed  a  large  mass  of  ice  had  apparently 
fallen  off,  and.  become  wedged  between  the  walls  as  one 
sometimes  sees  a  rock  in  a  mountain  gorge.  It  had  not 
fallen  far,  and  was  not  difficult  of  access,  but  it  was  sharp 
like  a  house-roof,  and  slippery  as  a  house-roof  when  cov- 
ered with  sleet.  It  was,  clearly,  take  this  natural  bridge, 
or  turn  back  and  return  over  all  the  tedious  distance 
which  we  had  already  traversed.  This,  however,  was  not 
to  be  thought  of  while  there  was  a  possible  chance ;  so 
we  tossed  hats  for  the  first  venture,  and  the  lot  fell  to  me. 


CROSSING  THE   CREVAB8K   ON    AN   ICE   BBIT>GK. 


CROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  161 

Getting  down  on  all-fours,  I  crawled  out  as  far  as  I 
could  go  in  that  way.  I  then  bestrode  the  ridge,  and  pro- 
pelled myself  along  upon  my  bare  hands,  making  a  few 
inches  headway  with  each  effort.  On  either  side  there 
was  a  bridge,  with  a  yawning  depth  of  blue  beneath  me 
melting  into  "darkness  most  profound,"  from  which  came 
the  roar  of  falling  waters.  It  fairly  made  my  head  swim 
as  I  clung  insecurely  to  the  sharp,  narrow,  slippery  bridge 
and  looked  down  first  one  side,  then  the  other,  into  the 
abyss.  Retreat  I  could  not,  even  if  so  disposed,  for  I 
had  descended  from  the  start,  and  could  not  back  myself 
up  with  my  hands,  nor  could  I  turn  round.  There  was 
nothing  to  do  but  push  ahead ;  and  this  I  did,  cheered  on 
by  the  captain's  shouts  to  be  careful  and  not  break  down 
the  bridge,  for  he  wanted  the  use  of  it.  Finally,  the  effort 
was  rewarded  with  success,  and  as  I  scrambled  up  the 
slope  and  along  the  ridge  of  the  other  side  to  a  place 
where  I  could  sit  down  and  rest  myself,  I  experienced  a 
profound  sensation  of  relief.  The  captain  followed,  and, 
after  accomplishing  the  feat  successfully,  as  I  had  done,  he 
said,  looking  back  at  the  dangerous  pass, "  Well,  I  don't 
want  any  more  of  that  sort  of  thing,"  a  sentiment  which  I 
very  heartily  echoed.  But  the  very  next  crack  we  took, 
although  having  much  less  the  appearance  of  risk,  had 
like  to  have  proved  fatal  to  me,  for,  on  a  leap  of  about 
eight  feet  I  partly  missed  my  footing,  and  fell  short  of  my 
intended  mark.  When  I  felt  myself  going  back  I  experi- 
enced that  horrid  sinking  feeling  which  comes  over  one 
only  with  the  prospect  of  immediate  death,  without  the 
chance  for  a  struggle.  So  far  as  I  could  know,  I  was 
gone;  and  in  an  instant  more  I  should  have  been  plung- 
ing down  into  the  chasm,  had  not  my  foot  brought  up  on 
a  slight  projection,  which  gave  me  an  opportunity  to  use 
my  hands ;  and  the  captain  coming  now  to  my  assistance,, 


162 


THE  LASD    OF  DESOLATION. 


I  scrambled  up  to  a  place  of  safety.  After  this  we  en- 
countered no  more  serious  difficulties,  and,  discovering  a 
smooth  slope,  we  descended  by  it  to  the  shore,  which  we 
reached  very  wet,  very  sore,  and  much  fatigued. 

We  were  about  two  miles  now  from  the  vessel,  which 
distance  was  traversed  through  a  gorge  corresponding  to 
that  by  which  we  had  ascended  on  the  opposite  side 
of  the  glacier.  It  was,  however,  much  rougher,  and  the 
shore  being  more  abrupt,  the  disturbance,  both  of  rock 
and  ice,  was  much  greater.  And  here  we  observe  a  most 
interesting  feature  of  the  glacier  movement  and  formation. 


J/./Ws 

«y .'    *  /       w..  '---••    -h 


HIGJI  HTLLS 


MAP   OF   THE   GLACTEB. 


The  glacier,  in  its  progress  down  the  valley  into  the  fiord, 
must  necessarily  adapt  itself  to  every  inequality  of  the 
bank.  But  this  is  not  done  without  serious  resistance. 
Thousands  and  millions  of  tons  of  earth,  sand,  and  rock 
are  rooted  up,  and  pushed  aside  when  the  glacier  expands 
into  the  side  valleys,  and,  when  a  solid  cliff  receives  the 
pressure,  the  crushed  arid  disturbed  condition  of  the  ice, 
as  the  glacier  impinges  against  the  rock,  shows  how  im- 


CROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  163 

mensely  powerful  is  the  force.  Something  must  give  way 
before  this  irresistible  flood.  In  one  place  there  was  a 
ridge  rolled  up  to  the  height  of  fifty  feet,  and  rocks  weigh- 
ing hundreds  of  tons  were  treated  as  if  they  were  the 
merest  pebbles  turned  over  and  scattered  by  the  mould- 
board  of  a  plough. 

Our  descent  through  the  gorge  was  not  without  inter- 
est of  another  character.  Down  near  the  fiord  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  ice  had  been  greatest  in  consequence  of 
passing  over  a  more  rapid  declivity,  and  here  several 
cracks  opened  from  the  bottom,  and,  closing  more  or  less 
perfectly  at  about  fifty  feet  altitude,  appeared  like  the 
mouths  to  great  caverns.  Inspired  by  curiosity,  I  entered 
one  of  these,  to  find  myself  scrambling  along  over  rocks 
and  through  deep  mud,  while  water  dropped  down  upon 
my  head  in  torrents,  for  a  distance  of  about  thirty  yards, 
when  I  came  upon  the  border  of  a  rushing  stream  of 
muddy  water.  This  was  the  stream  already  mentioned, 
which  gushes  out  from  beneath  the  glacier's  front. 

Of  all  the  signs  and  tokens  of  watery  tumult  that  I  have 
ever  witnessed  this  excelled  them  all.  The  roar  of  the 
fast-flowing  stream  as  it  dashed  down  the  steep  declivity 
over  the  rocks  beneath,  and  against  the  ice  above,  break- 
ing around  the  enormous  boulders  upon  which  the  glacier 
was  supported,  was  perfectly  deafening.  I  had  come  in 
alongside  of  a  ledge  of  a  rock  about  ten  feet  high,  upon 
which  the  ice  rested  firmly.  This  ledge,  terminating 
where  I  stood,  formed  a  protecting  barrier,  behind  which 
I  could  witness  the  spectacle  in  perfect  security,  though 
not  with  comfort,  for  to  be  drenched  with  ice-water  is  not 
at  all  agreeable. 

As  I  stood  here,  I  realized  more  perfectly  than  ever  be- 
fore the  process  by  which  have  been  formed  those  mark- 
ings on  the  rocks  which  Professor  Agassiz  has  so  conspicu- 


1(54  THE  LAND    OP  DESOLATION. 

ously  pointed  out  in  regions  which  were  once  covered  with 
ice  during  the  glacial  epoch.  The  effect  of  this  enormous 
pressure  of  these  hundreds  of  feet  of  ice  that  were  above 
my  head,  sliding  down  over  the  rocks,  and  rolling  upon 
the  boulders,  was  there  evident  to  the  senses.  The  mova- 
ble rocks  were  being  rounded  or  ground  to  powder,  and  the 
bed  was  being  scarred  with  deep  and  ineffaceable  scratch- 
es. Below  me  the  bottom  of  the  cavern  allowed  of  my  con- 
tinuing down  beside  the  stream  about  fifty  feet  to  a  point 
where  both  a  stream  of  light  and  a  stream  of  water  were 
admitted  into  the  blackness  through  a  wide  crevasse. 

Curiosity  once  satisfied,  I  began  to  realize  the  perilous 
situation  into  which  I  had  thus  voluntarily  come.  The 
darkness  through  which  I  was  groping  made  it  not  im- 
probable that  I  might  stumble  and  plunge  headlong  into 
the  muddy  river  and  be  borne  away  by  the 

"Dark  water  that  tumbled  through  the  gloom." 

Then  it  seemed  as  if  the  great  arch  might  give  way  and 
bury  me  in  its  ruins,  or  a  mass  might  break  off  from  above, 
and,  falling  upon  my  head,  crush  me  to  death ;  and  while 
creeping  cautiously  along,  with  my  face  turned  towards 
the  opening  by  which  I  had  rashly  entered,  and  with  no 
longer  an  unsatisfied  longing  to  quiet  my  fears,  I  could 
not"  but  accuse  myself  of  an  absurd  temerity,  when  I  suf- 
fered myself  to  be  led  into  a  place  where, 

"Bellowing,  there  groaned 
A  voice  as  of  a  sea  in  tempest  torn 
By  warring  winds." 

I  was  soon,  however,  in  the  open  air  again,  and  as  thor- 
oughly water-soaked  as  if  I  had  fallen  bodily  into  the  sea ; 
and  being  perfectly  chilled,  I  did  not  long  delay  in  finding 
my  way  down  to  the  beach,  where  I  joined  the  captain, 


CROSSING   THE  GLACIER.  165 

who  was  awaiting  me.  He  had  hailed  for  a  boat,  and 
I  was  soon  out  of  my  shivering  condition,  but  not  soon 
enough  to  prevent  me  from  moralizing  over  the  unfathom- 
able depths  of  human  folly,  while  yet  reflecting  upon  the 
wonders  we  had  seen,  and  the  unusual  adventures  we  had 
experienced  during  our  morning  walk ;  for  be  it  known 
we  had  started  off  without  breakfast,  and  after  six  hours' 
continuous  labor  we  were  returning  at  eleven  o'clock,  with 
stomachs  which  could  not  be  beaten  for  emptiness.  It  is 
only  in  such  a  bracing  air  as  that  of  the  Arctic  regions 
that  one  can  endure  such  continued  exposure  without  suf- 
fering severe  prostration.  The  idea  that  people  necessari- 
ly consume  more  food  in  that  region  than  another,  is  a  pop- 
ular error.  Excessive  feeding  is  everywhere  a  habit  and 
not  a  necessity ;  but  as  "  the  sleep  of  the  laboring  man  is 
sweet,"  so  is  his  appetite  vigorous  everywhere. 


166  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

SPECULATIONS. 

I  TRUST  that  I  have  made  plain,  even  to  the  least  scientific 
of  my  readers,  the  nature  of  the  glacier  which  we  are  visit- 
ing, as  well  as  the  general  principles  of  glacier  formation 
and  movement.  Why  ice,  a  solid,  firm  substance,  should 
move  in  obedience  to  the  same  laws  which  govern  the 
movements  of  fluids ;  why,  for  instance,  a  glacier  should, 
like  a  river,  move  more  rapidly  at  its  centre  than  near  its 
banks,  is  a  question  which  the  wisest  philosophers  have 
sufficiently  discussed  without  my  attempting  it  here. 
Taking  the  fact  for  granted,  and  knowing  that  the  vast 
reservoir  of  ice  in  the  interior  of  Greenland  is  the  great 
source  of  supply  to  all  the  glaciers  that  pour  to  the  sea 
through  the  mountain-passes,  we  may  here,  I  think,  not  in- 
appropriately, pause  a  little  to  watch  the  progress  of  this 
glacier  of  Sermitsialik. 

Even  within  the  period  of  a  generation  it  has  undergone 
very  perceptible  changes.  Peter  Motzfeldt  has  told  me 
that  fifty  years  ago  he  walked  across  the  valley  in  front 
of  it,  and  plucked  whortleberries  upon  the  identical  spot 
where  I  had  gone  into  the  ice-cavern  to  hear  the  waters 
rushing  to  the  sea.  He  pointed  out  to  me  the  line  of  the 
glacier  front  at  that  time,  so  far  as  he  could  remember  it 
(and  the  memory  of  such  men  is  apt  to  be  accurate) ;  and, 
accepting  his  memory  as  correct,  the  movement  of  the  gla- 
cier from  that  time  to  the  present  has  been  about  seven 
(7)  inches  daily,  the  distance  being  a  fraction  over  two 
miles. 


SPECULATIONS.  169 

With  this  positive  assurance  before  us  we  may,  in  im- 
agination, witness  the  spectacle  of  this  glacier's  growth. 
Going  back  to  the  time  when  it  first  emerged  from  the 
mer  de  glace  (to  the  time  when  the  ice  first  began  to  bulge 
downward  into  the  valley  which  it  now  fills  completely), 
we  see  the  valley  clothed  with  verdure,  sparrows  chirrup- 
ing among  the  branches  of  the  stunted  trees,  herds  of 
reindeer  browsing  upon  its  abundant  pastures,  and  drink- 
ing from  a  stream  of  limpid  water  which,  melting  from  the 
glacier,  pours  down  over  the  same  precipices,  and  through 
the  same  defiles  which  the  ice  now  fills  and  covers.  This 
must  have  been  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago, 
since  the  distance  from  the  sea  to  where  the  break  oc- 
curs in  the  mountain-chain  through  which  the  ice-stream 
emerges  into  the  valley  is  about  ten  miles.  We  see  it 
then  just  appearing,  and  we  watch  its  progress  through 
this  long  time.  Its  front  is  hundreds  of  feet  high  and 
miles  across.  We  observe  the  icy  flood  moving  steadily 
and  irresistibly  onward,  over  precipices,  down  steep  de- 
clivities, upon  level  plains — sometimes  advancing  with 
comparative  rapidity,  sometimes  slowly,  but  steadily,  year 
by  year,  coming  towards  the  fiord.  We  see  it  swallowing 
up  rocks  and  pastures ;  we  see  the  deer  retire  farther  and 
farther  down  the  valley  with  each  returning  year ;  we  see 
the  hillocks  within  the  valley  overwhelmed  with  the  flood 
of  ice,  the  crystal  stream  pouring  over  and  around  them 
as  if  it  were  some  semi-fluid  substance ;  we  hear  the  crack- 
ing of  the  ice  as  the  strain  here  and  there  becomes  too 
great ;  and  we  hear,  too,  the  echoing  sound  of  the  ava- 
lanche of  ice  and.  snow,  crumbling  from  its  front,  and 
crashing  down  into  the  plain  beneath.  We  thus  watch 
the  ice-stream  until  the  front  of  it  has  reached  the  fiord. 
But  here  it  does  not  stop.  The  bed  of  the  sea  is  but  a 
continuation  of  the  same  inclined  plain  as  the  bed  of  the 

H 


170  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

valley,  and  its  onward  course  is  continued.  It  pushes 
back  the  water ;  it  makes  a  coast-line  of  ice  where  there 
had  been  a  beach ;  and  a  white  wall  now  stretches  from 
one  side  of  the  fiord  to  the  other.  As  it  flows  onward,  it 
gets  into  deeper  and  deeper  water,  its  foot  still  resting  on 
the  bottom  of  the  sea.  Thus  the  icy  wall  sinks  gradually 
down  as  it  moves  along,  and  in  course  of  time  it  has  almost 
gone  out  of  sight.  Then  it  gets  beyond  its  depth. 

When  fresh  ice  floats  freely  in  sea-water,  there  is  one- 
eighth  of  it  above  the  surface  to  seven-eighths  below.  If 
these  proportions  become  disturbed — that  is  to  say,  if 
the  glacier  should  project  far  enough  out  into  the  sea  and 


VERTICAL   SECTION   OF   GLACIER. 


deep  water  to  present  more  than  seven-eighths  below  to 
one-eighth  above,  then  the  buoyancy  of  the  water  will  lift 
the  end  of  the  ice-stream  until  it  attains  its  natural  equi- 
librium. To  do  this,  of  course,  a  break  must  occur,  as  the 
ice  will  not  bend.  But  for  a  long  time  the  continuity  of 
the  ice  is  not  interrupted  —  so  great  is  its  depth  (many 
hundreds  of  feet),  so  great  is  its  width  (two  miles).  But 
finally  it  is  compelled  to  give  way ;  the  force  applied  be- 
comes too  great  for  its  powers  of  resistance.  A  crack, 
beginning  at  the  bottom,  is  opened,  with  a  fearful  crash. 
The  crack  widens,  and  when  it  is  completed  to  the  top  a 
fragment  is  detached.  This  fragment  is  buoyed  up  to  its 
proper  level ;  and  while  the  loud  noise  of  the  disruption  is 
echoing  among  the  hills,  and  the  great  waves  of  its  cre- 
ating are  rolling  away,  the  monstrous  mass  is  coming 


SPECULATIONS.  171 

slowly  to  rest,  ready  to  float  off  with  the  current  to  the 
ocean.  This  fragment,  as  we  have  already  seen,  is  the  ice- 
berg. Its  birth,  as  we  shall  presently  notice,  is  attended 
with  the  most  violent  disturbance  of  the  sea  and  air,  and 
presents  a  magnificent  spectacle. 

The  accompanying  vertical  section  of  the  glacier  of  Ser- 
mitsialik,  run  up  its  axis  from  the  fiord  to  its  junction  with 
the  mer  de  glace  (a  distance  of  ten  miles),  will  illustrate 
the  fact  I  wish  to  prove,  and  the  theory  I  wish  to  illus- 
trate. The  view  of  the  same  glacier,  on  page  147,  will 
still  further  aid  the  reader ;  and  this,  examined  in  connec- 
tion with  the  small  map  on  page  162,  will  explain  what 
any  number  of  words  would  fail  to  make  clear.  This  ver- 
tical section  shows  an  iceberg  just  broken  off  and  floating 
away.  The  line  of  the  section  is  from  A  to  B,  as  shown 
on  the  map. 


172  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

MEASUREMENT  OF  GLACIERS. 

As  we  have  seen,  the  glacier  does  not  accommodate  it- 
self to  the  bed  in  which  it  rests  very  readily.  The  sub- 
stance, though  possessing  a  sort  of  ductility,  is  not  suffi- 
ciently plastic  to  mould  itself  with  much  rapidity.  A 
sudden  squall  will  snap  a  twig,  or  uproot  a  tree  which  a 
gale  would  only  bend.  In  like  manner,  the  pressure  upon 
the  ice  becomes  in  places  too  great,  and,  unable  to  bear  it, 
the  ice  snaps.  Professor  Tyndall  has  said  —  and  this  is 
borne  out  by  my  own  experience — "  By  pressure  ice  can 
be  moulded  to  any  shape,  while  the  same  ice  snaps  sharply 
asunder  if  subjected  to  tension."  Hence  arise  the  great 
crevasses  which  so  much  embarrassed  the  captain  and  my- 
self while  crossing  over  the  glacier  of  Sermitsialik.  These 
cracks  are  therefore  continually  occurring.  Beginning  as 
a  loud  and  alarming  peal,  they  become  in  the  end  a  crash. 
This  particularly  happens  when  the  glacier,  flowing  over  a 
quick  descent,  moves  rapidly. 

In  this  manner  are  opened  those  crevasses  already  men- 
tioned as  running  inward  and  upward  from  the  shore,  and 
pursuing  a  general  parallelism.  The  force  is  not  that  of 
pressure,  but  of  tension.  The  sides  hang  more  or  less  upon 
the  shore,  while  the  centre  moves  on,  and  thus  the  ice  is 
drawn  apart.  The  shore-ice  thus  lags  behind,  and  the  to- 
tal amount  of  that  lagging  is  told  in  the  aggregate  width 
of  the  crevasses. 

I  have  mentioned  that  the  rate  of  progress  of  the  centre 
of  the  glacier  of  Sermitsialik  must  have  been  about  seven 


MEASUREMENT  OF  GLACIERS.  133 

inches  daily.  Others  move  at  the  rate  of  five.  The  proc- 
ess for  this  determination  is  simple  enough.  I  have  per- 
formed it  many  times,  and  may  thus  briefly  describe  it. 

After  climbing  to  the  surface  of  the  glacier,  I  staked  off 
a  base-line  near  the  centre,  and  parallel  with  its  sides.  I 
then  set  up  a  theodolite,  first  at  one,  then  at  the  other 
end  of  this  base-line,  and,  having  connected  it  by  careful 
angular  measurement  with  some  well-defined  object  (read- 
ily again  recognized)  on  the  land,  at  the  side  of  the  gla- 
cier, the  work  was  done.  After  an  interval  of  weeks  or 
mpnths,  the  process  was  repeated,  and  then  a  very  simple 
trigonometrical  computation  revealed  the  fact  that  the 
base-line  was  moving  down  the  valley,  and  the  rate  was 
determined  to  a  small  fraction. 

The  unequal  movement  between  the  centre  and  the 
sides  was  shown  by  quite  another  method.  A  line  of 
stakes  was  set  up  across  the  glacier  from  shore  to  shore. 
After  a  few  weeks  this  line  became  a  slight  curve ;  after  a 
few  months  the  curve  was  very  perceptible.  Could  the 
observation  have  been  continued  through  years,  it  would 
have  been  like  a  well-bent  bow,  or  the  letter  U. 

Such  measurements  as  these  I  once  made  upon  a  glacier 
at  Port  Foulke,  North  Greenland.  The  top  of  the  glacier 
was  reached,  after  much  difficulty,  by  cutting  steps  with 
an  axe.  The  cracks  were  not,  however,  found  to  be  so 
wide  or  so  numerous  as  those  of  the  glacier  of  Sermitsialik, 
but  they  were  sufficient  to  inspire  me  with  a  lively  sense 
of  the  danger  of  such  exploration.  When  my  first  exper- 
iments were  made,  there  was  a  strong  wind  howling  down 
from  the  mer  de  glace,  bringing  with  it  sharp,  cutting 
snow-drifts.  The  brass  instrument  which  I  used  froze  to 
the  eye,  and  had  to  be  covered  with  buckskin.  The  moist- 
ure of  the  breath  condensed  upon  the  lenses,  and  I  had  to 
breathe  through  a  tube  while  observing.  The  men  who 


174  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

carried  the  chain  "  scorched "  their  fingers  with  the  cold 
metal.  Under  such  circumstances  the  pursuit  of  science 
becomes  a  species  of  martyrdom,  and  is  therefore  not 
much  in  favor. 

In  the  movement  shown  by  these  measurements  we 
have  conclusively  exhibited  the  likeness  of  the  glacier  to 
a  river,  and  the  assertion  that  it  is  but  a  flowing  river 
of  ice  is  fully  borne  out  and  proved  by  observation  with 
mathematical  nicety.  In  my  own  experiments  upon  the 
Greenland  glaciers  I  have  but  followed  the  example  and 
practised  the  methods  of  Professors  Agassiz,  Forbes,  Tyn- 
dall,  and  others,  not  forgetting  the  experts  of  the  Alpine 
Club,  whose  explorations  of  the  glaciers  of  the  Alps  have 
latterly  become  so  familiar  to  the  public. 


THE  BIRTH   OF  AN  ICEBERG.  175 


CHAPTER  VHL 

THE  BIRTH  OF  AN  ICEBERG. 

I  CAN  imagine  no  more  grand  and  imposing  spectacle 
than  the  birth  of  an  iceberg ;  and  we  have  now,  I  think, 
gone  far  enough  in  the  examination  of  glaciers  and  their 
movements  to  contemplate  such  a  spectacle,  which,  what- 
ever it  may  seem  to  the  reader,  was  to  me  most  thrilling. 
It  did  not  happen  in  connection  with  the  Panther,  and 
may  at  first,  therefore,  seem  to  be  a  little  out  of  place ; 
but  as  it  serves  my  purpose,  I  make  free  to  use  it,  by  way 
of  illustration. 

The  scene  was  in  a  fiord  ten  times  wider  than  that  of 
Sermitsialik,  though  not  much  longer.  Unlike  that  of  Ser- 
mitsialik,  it  was  studded  with  islands  and  shoal  places. 
The  glacier  which  terminated  it  was  twenty  miles  across, 
although  not  quite  uniformly;  for  the  ice  had  poured 
down  into  the  sea,  and,  while  having  blotted  out  some  of 
the  islands,  it  had  barely  touched  others ;  otherwise  the 
coast-line  of  ice  was  perfect  and  continuous.  The  islands 
and  shoal  places  in  the  fiord  arrest  the  icebergs;  and 
within  ten  miles  or  more  of  the  glacier  it  is  almost  impos- 
sible to  go.  With  great  difficulty  I  came  within  five,  in 
a  boat.  Farther  I  could  not  force  my  way  by  any  possi- 
bility ;  and,  accordingly,  we  made  the  land  and  climbed  a 
lofty  hill  for  a  view. 

The  fiord  which  I  thus  describe  is  known  as  the  fiord 
of  Aukpadlartok,  a  native  word  signifying  "  the  place  of 
the  red  rocks."  I  had  gone  up  the  fiord  from  Uperna- 
vik  to  the  hut  of  a  hunter,  who  was  the  bestyrere  of  a 


170  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

small  settlement  of  that  name  belonging  to  the  Uperna- 
vik  district. 

It  was  a  grand  spectacle  that  met  my  eye  as  I  stood 
upon  the  hill-top  overlooking  the  fiord,  with  its  thousands 
of  icebergs,  its  dark  rocky  islands,  and  the  immense  quan- 
tity of  loose  ice  which  filled  up  the  space  between  the 
bergs  and  islands,  until  there  was  scarcely  a  patch  of  wa- 
ter to  be  seen  anywhere  as  large  as  a  good-sized  duck- 
pond.  Very  different  from  the  fiord  of  Sermitsialik, 
where  there  were  no  islands  nor  shoals  to  arrest  the  ice  in 
its  progress  down  the  fiord. 

I  was  accompanied  by  the  bestyrere  of  Aukpadlartok, 
whose  name  was  Philip.  We  stood  together  looking  at 
the  glacier  and  the  great  sea  of  ice  which  stretched  away 
into  the  interior,  blending  mountains  and  valleys  into  a 
vast  plain,  when  Philip  said,  "  Listen  !  the  glacier  is  going 
to  '  calve ;' "  for  that  is  the  name  by  which  they  distinguish 
the  breaking  off  of  a  fragment. 

I  heard  a  loud  report,  but  I  could  not  at  once  distin- 
guish the  source  of  it.  An  instant  afterward  it  was  re- 
peated, now  louder  than  before.  It  resembled  the  first 
warning  sound  of  a  coming  earthquake. 

Philip  had  detected  the  spot  whence  the  sound  proceed- 
ed, and  said,  "  Look  !  it  is  rising." 

I  could  now  see  that  a  portion  of  the  glacier  was  being 
lifted  by  the  water.  A  great  wave  was  rolled  back  with 
this  upward  movement,  and  dashed  fiercely  against  the 
icebergs  that  lay  farther  down  the  fiord.  Another  in- 
stant, and  the  sound,  which  was  before  so  deep  and  loud, 
broke  through  the  air  with  a  crash  that  was  like  the  dis- 
charge of  heavy  artillery  near  at  hand.  I  knew  now  that 
a  crack  had  opened  in  the  ice-stream,  and  that  a  mass  had 
been  disengaged. 

The  position  of  the  crack  was  quickly  apparent,  and  we 


THE  BIRTH  OF  AN  IVEBERU.  17? 

could  see  that  a  fragment  of  enormous  proportions  had 
been  set  at  liberty.  It  first  reared  itself  aloft  as  if  it  were 
some  huge  leviathan  of  the  deep  indued  with  life,  and  was 
sporting  its  unwieldy  bulk  in  the  hitherto  undisturbed 
waters.  The  crack  had  now  opened  wide.  The  detached 
fragment  plunged  forward  ;  the  front,  which  had  been  ris- 
ing, then  sunk  down,  while  the  inner  side  rose  up,  and  vol- 
umes of  water  that  had  been  lifted  with  the  sudden  mo- 
tion poured  from  its  sides,  hissing,  into  the  foaming  and 
agitated  sea. 

Thus  an  iceberg  had  been  born. 

It  would  be  impossible  with  mere  words  alone  to  con- 
vey any  adequate  idea  of  the  action  of  this  new-born 
child  of  the  Arctic  frosts.  Think  of  a  solid  lump  of  ice,  a 
third  of  a  mile  deep,  and  more  than  half  a  mile  in  lateral 
diameter,  hurled  like  a  mere  toy  away  into  the  water  and 
set  to  rolling  to  and  fro  by  the  impetus  of  the  act — as  if  it 
were  Nature's  merest  foot-ball — now  down  one  side,  until 
the  huge  bulk  was  nearly  capsized ;  then  back  again ;  then 
down  the  other  side  once  more,  with  the  same  unresisting 
force;  and  so  on,  up  and  down,  and  down  and  up,  swash- 
ing to  and  fro  for  hours  before  it  comes  finally  to  rest. 
Picture  this,  and  you  will  have  an  image  of  power  not  to 
be  seen  by  the  action  of  any  other  forces  upon  the  earth. 

The  disturbance  of  the  water  was  inconceivably  fine. 
Waves  of  enormous  magnitude  were  rolled  up  with  great 
violence  against  the  glacier,  covering  it  with  spray;  and 
billows  came  tearing  down  the  fiord,  their  progress  marked 
by  the  crackling  and  crumbling  ice,  which  was  everywhere 
in  a  state  of  wildest  agitation  for  the  space  of  several 
miles.  Over  the  smaller  icebergs  the  water  broke  com- 
pletely, as  if  a  tempest  were  piling  up  the  seas  and  heaving 
them  fiercely  against  the  shore.  Then,  to  add  still  further 
to  the  commotion  thus  occasioned,  the  great  wallowing 

H2 


178  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

iceberg,  which  was  the  cause  of  it  all,  was  dropping  frag- 
ments from  its  sides  with  each  oscillation,  the  reports  of 
the  rupture  reaching  the  ear  above  the  general  din  and 
clamor.  Other  bergs  were  set  in  motion  by  the  waves, 
and  these  also  dropped  pieces  from  their  sides;  and  at 
last,  as  if  it  were  the  grand  finale  of  the  piece — the  clash 
of  cymbals  and  the  big  bass-drum  of  nature's  grand  orches- 
tra— a  monstrous  berg  near  the  middle  of  the  fiord  split 
in  two,  and,  above  the  sound  of  breaking  waters  and  fall- 
ing ice,  this  last  disruption  filled  the  air  with  a  peal  that 
rang  among  the  bergs  and  crags,  and,  echoing  from  hill  to 
hill,  died  away  only  in  the  void  beyond  the  mountain-tops ; 
while  to  the  noisy  tune  the  icebergs  of  the  fiord  danced 
their  wild  ungainly  dance  upon  the  waters. 

It  was  many  hours  before  this  state  of  wild  unrest  was 
succeeded  by  the  calm  which  had  preceded  the  commence- 
ment of  it ;  and  when  at  length  the  iceberg  that  had  been 
born  came  quietly  to  rest,  and  the  other  icebergs  had 
ceased  their  dance  upon  the  troubled  sea,  and  the  waves 
had  ceased  their  lashings,  it  seemed  to  me  that,  in  behold- 
ing this  birth  of  an  iceberg,  I  had  beheld  one  of  the  most 
sublime  exhibitions  of  the  great  forces  of  nature.  It  was 
in  truth  a  convulsion. 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE.  179 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  NARROW  ESCAPE. 

THE  birth  of  the  iceberg  described  in  the  preceding 
chapter  will  better  enable  the  reader  to  comprehend  a 
much  more  fearful  event  which  happened  in  the  fiord  of 
Sermitsialik. 

During  the  absence  of  the  captain  and  myself  from  the 
vessel  the  artists  had  not  been  idle.  They  had  landed 
near  the  glacier,  and  with  brush  and  camera  had  begun 
their  work.  The  day  was  warm,  the  mercury  rising  to 
68°  in  the  shade,  and  the  sun,  coming  around  to  the  south, 
blazed  upon  the  cold,  icy  wall.  This  must  have  produced 
some  difference  of  temperature  between  the  ice  touched 
by  the  solar  rays  and  that  of  the  interior,  which  was  in  all 
probability  several  degrees  below  the  freezing-point,  for 
towards  noon  there  was  an  incessant  crackling  along  the 
entire  front  of  ice.  Small  pieces  were  split  off  with  ex- 
plosive violence,  and,  falling  to  the  sea,  produced  a  fine  ef- 
fect as  the  spray  and  water  spurted  from  the  spot  where 
they  struck.  Scarcely  an  instant  passed  without  a  dis- 
turbance occurring  of  this  kind.  It  was  like  a  fusillade 
of  artillery.  Now  and  then  a  mass  of  considerable  size 
would  break  loose,  producing  an  impression  both  upon  the 
eye  and  ear  that  was  very  startling. 

By  one  o'clock  every  body  had  come  on  board  to  din- 
ner, and  for  a  while  we  all  stood  on  deck  watching  the 
spectacle  and  noting  the  changes  that  took  place  with  in- 
terest. It  was  observed,  among  other  curious  phenomena, 
that  when  the  ice  broke  off  the  fractured  surface  was  deep 


ISO  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

blue,  and  that  if  any  ice,  as  sometimes  happened,  came  up 
from  beneath  the  water,  it  bore  the  same  color ;  but  after 
a  short  exposurse  to  the  sun,  the  surface  changed,  and  be- 
came almost  pure  white,  with  the  satin  glitter  before  de- 
scribed. Our  situation  for  a  view  could  not  have  been  bet- 
ter chosen,  and  it  is  not  likely  that  such  an  opportunity 
was  ever  enjoyed  before  by  explorers,  since  it  is  not  prob- 
able that  a  vessel  ever  rode  before  at  her  anchor  so  near 
a  glacier. 

After  dinner  the  work  was  to  be  resumed.  The  photog- 
raphers hastened  ashore,  hoping  to  catch  an  instantane- 
ous view  of  some  tumbling  fragment,  which  if  they  could 
have  done  would  certainly  have  exceeded  in  interest  any 
other  view  they  had  secured.  The  question  of  moving 
our  anchorage  was  deferred  to  the  captain,  who  decided 
to  go  over  to  the  other  side  when  the  artists  had  been  put 
ashore  with  their  tools.  Steam  was  indeed  already  up. 

The  boat  had  reached  the  shore  for  this  purpose,  and 
had  shoved  off  for  the  ship,  leaving  the  artists  on  the 
beach;  and  the  order  had  been  given  by  the  captain  to 
"  up  anchor,"  when  loud  reports  were  heard  one  after  an- 
other in  quick  succession.  A  number  of  large  pieces  had 
broken  off,  and  their  fall  disturbed  the  sea  to  such  an 
extent  that  the  vessel  began  to  roll  quite  perceptibly, 
and  waves  broke  with  considerable  force  upon  the  shore. 
Then,  without  a  moment's  warning,  there  was  a  report 
louder  than  any  we  had  yet  heard.  It  was  evident  that 
some  unusual  event  was  about  to  happen,  and  a  feeling  of 
alarm  was  generally  experienced. 

Casting  my  eyes  in  the  direction  from  which  the  sound 
proceeded,  the  cause  of  it  was  at  once  explained.  The 
very  centre  or  extreme  point  of  the  glacier  was  in  a  state 
of  apparent  disintegration.  Here  the  ice  was  peculiarly 
picturesque,  and  we  had  never  ceased  to  admire  it,  and 


A  NARROW  me  APE.  181 

sketch  and  photograph  it.  A  perfect  forest  of  Gothic 
spires,  more  or  less  symmetrical,  gave  it  the  appearance 
of  a  vast  cathedral,  fashioned  by  the  hands  of  man.  The 
origin  of  these  spires  will  be  readily  understood  to  be  in 
consequence,  first,  of  the  formation  of  crevasses  far  up  on 
the  glacier;  and  secondly,  by  the  spaces  between  them 
widening,  and  sharpening  and  rounding  off  by  the  action 
of  the  sun  as  the  glacier  steadily  approaches  the  sea.  At 
the  base  of  these  spires  there  were  several  pointed  arches, 
some  of  them  almost  perfect  in  form,  which  still  further 
strengthened  the  illusion  that  they  might  be  of  human 
and  not  of  natural  creation.  At  the  extreme  point  there 
was  one  spire  that  stood  out  quite  detached,  almost  from 
the  water's  edge  to  its  summit.  This  could  not  have  been 
much  less  than  two  hundred  feet  high.  I  had  passed 
very  near  this  while  crossing  over  in  the  boat,  and  the 
front  of  it  appeared  to  extend  vertically  down  to  the  bot- 
tom. In  the  clear  green  water  (for  the  muddy  water  of 
the  southern  side  did  not  reach  over  so  far)  I  could  trace 
it  a  long  way  into  the  sea.  I  had  little  idea  then  how 
treacherous  an  object  it  was,  or  I  would  not  have  ventured 
so  near,  for  I  was  not  more  than  a  boat's  length  from  it. 

The  last  and  loudest  report,  as  above  mentioned,  came 
from  this  wonderful  spire,  which  was  sinking  down.  It 
seemed,  indeed,  as  if  the  foundations  of  the  earth  were 
giving  way,  and  that  the  spire  was  descending  into  the 
yawning  depths  below.  The  effect  was  magnificent.  It 
did  not  topple  over  and  fall  headlong,  but  went  down 
bodily,  and  in  doing  so  crumbled  into  numberless  pieces. 
The  process  was  not  instantaneous,  but  lasted  for  the 
space  of  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  minute.  It  broke  up  as 
if  it  were  composed  of  scales,  the  fastenings  of  which 
had  given  way,  layer  after  layer,  until  the  very  core  was 
reached,  and  there  was  nothing  left  of  it.  But  we  could 


182  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

not  witness  this  process  of  disintegration  in  detail  after 
the  first  few  moments,  for  the  whole  glacier  almost  to  its 
summit  became  enveloped  in  spray  —  a  semi-transparent 
cloud  through  which  the  crumbling  of  the  ice  could  be 
faintly  seen.  Shouts  of  admiration  and  astonishment 
burst  from  the  ship's  company.  The  greatest  danger 
would  scarcely  have  been  sufficient  to  withdraw  the  eye 
from  the  fascinating  spectacle.  But  when  the  summit  of 
the  spire  began  to  sink  away  amidst  the  great  white  mass 
of  foam  and  mist,  into  which  it  finally  disappeared,  the 
enthusiasm  was  unbounded. 

By  this  time,  however,  other  portions  of  the  glacier 
were  undergoing  a  similar  transformation,  influenced,  no 
doubt,  by  the  shock  which  had  been  communicated  by 
this  first  disruption.  Other  spires,  less  perfect  in  their 
form,  disappeared  in  the  same  manner,  and  great  scales 
peeling  from  the  glacier  in  various  places  fell  into  the  sea 
with  a  prolonged  crash,  and  followed  by  a  loud  hissing 
and  crackling  sound.  Then,  in  the  general  confusion,  all 
particular  reports  were  swallowed  up  in  one  universal 
roar,  which  woke  the  echoes  of  the  hills  and  spread  con- 
sternation to  the  people  on  the  Panther's  deck. 

This  consternation  increased  with  every  moment ;  for 
the  roar  of  the  falling  and  crumbling  ice  was  drowned 
in  a  peal,  compared  to  which  the  loudest  thunder  of  the 
heavens  would  be  but  a  feeble  sound.  It  seemed  as  if  the 
foundations  of  the  earth,  which  had  given  way  to  admit 
the  sinking  ice,  were  now  rent  asunder,  and  the  world 
seemed  to  tremble.  From  the  commencement  of  the 
crumbling  to  this  moment  the  increase  of  sound  was 
steady  and  uninterrupted.  It  was  like  the  wind,  which, 
moaning  through  the  trees  before  a  storm,  elevates  its 
voice  with  its  multiplying  strength,  and  lays  the  forest 
low  in  the  crash  of  the  tempest. 


A  NARROW  ESCAPE.  183 

The  whole  glacier  about  the  place  where  these  disturb- 
ances were  occurring  was  enveloped  in  a  cloud,  which  rose 
up  over  the  glacier  as  one  sees  the  mist  rising  from  the 
abyss  below  Niagara,  and,  receiving  the  rays  of  the  sun, 
hold  a  rainbow  fluttering  above  the  vortex. 

While  the  fearful  sound  was  pealing  forth,  I  saw  a 
blue  mass  rising  through  the  cloud,  at  first  slowly,  then 
with  a  bound ;  and  now,  from  out  the  foam  and  mist,  a 
wave  of  vast  proportions  rolled  away  in  a  widening  semi- 
circle. I  could  watch  the  glacier  no  more.  The  instinct 
of  self-preservation  drove  me  to  seize  the  first  firm  object 
I  could  lay  my  hands  upon,  and  grasp  it  with  all  my 
strength.  The  wave  came  down  upon  us  with  the  speed 
of  the  wind.  The  swell  occasioned  by  an  earthquake  can 
alone  compare  with  it  in  magnitude.  It  rolled  beneath 
the  Panther,  lifted  her  upon  its  crest,  and  swept  her  to- 
wards the  rocks.  An  instant  more  and  I  was  flat  upon 
the  deck,  borne  down  by  the  stroke  of  falling  water.  The 
wave  had  broken  on  the  abrupt  shore,  and,  after  touching 
the  rocks  with  its  crest  a  hundred  feet  above  our  heads, 
had  curled  backward,  and,  striking  the  ship  with  terrific 
force,  had  deluged  the  decks.  A  second  wave  followed 
before  the  shock  of  the  first  had  fairly  ceased,  and  broke 
over  us  in  like  manner.  Another  and  another  came  after 
in  quick  succession ;  but  each  was  smaller  than  the  one 
preceding  it.  The  Panther  was  driven  within  two  fath- 
oms of  the  shore,  but  she  did  not  strike.  Thank  Heaven, 
our  anchor  held,  or  our  ship  would  have  been  knocked  to 
pieces,  or  landed  high  and  dry  with  the  first  great  wave 
that  rolled  under  us. 

When  it  became  evident  that  we  were  safe,  our  thoughts 
naturally  flew  to  our  comrades  on  the  shore.  To  our 
great  joy,  they  too  were  safe  ;  but  they  had  not  had  time 
to  clamber  up  the  steep  acclivity  before  the  first  wave  had 


184  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

buried  them.  Flinging  themselves  flat  upon  the  ground 
when  they  discovered  that  escape  was  hopeless,  and  cling- 
ing to  each  other  and  to  the  rocks,  they  prevented  them- 
selves from  being  carried  off  or  seriously  hurt.  One  had 
been  lifted  from  his  feet  and  hurled  with  much  force 
against  a*  rock,  but,  excepting  a  few  bruises,  he  was  not 
injured,  and  with  much  fervor  thanked  Heaven  that  it 
was  no  worse.  He  had,  indeed,  abundant  cause.  Had 
the  party  not  been  favored  by  the  rocks,  which  were  of 
such  formation  that  they  could  readily  spring  up  from 
ledge  to  ledge,  they  must  all  have  perished.  The  wave, 
before  it  reached  them,  had  expended  much  of  its  force. 
If  they  had  been  upon  the  beach  and  received  the  full 
force  of  the  blow,  they  would  inevitably  have  been  killed 
outright  or  drowned  in  the  under-tow.  Their  implements 
— bottles,  plates,  every  thing — were  either  gone,  or  were  a 
perfect  wreck.  Fortunately,  their  cameras  were  upon  the 
hill-side,  and  beyond  the  reach  of  the  wave,  where  they 
had  used  them  in  the  morning.  The  boat,  also,  was 
safe;  she  had  been  hauled  out  some  distance  from  the 
shore,  and  by  putting  her  head  to  the  waves  she  rode  in 
security. 

The  agitation  of  the  sea  continued  for  half  an  hour  af- 
ter the  first  wave  broke  upon  us.  This  was  partly  a  pro- 
longation of  the  first  disturbance,  but  proceeded  mainly 
from  the  original  cause  still  operating.  The  iceberg  had 
been  born  amidst  the  great  confusion,  and  as  it  was  the 
rolling  up  of  the  vast  mass  which  sent  that  first  wave 
away  in  a  widening  semicircle,  so  it  was  the  rocking  to 
and  fro  of  the  monster  that  continued  the  agitation  of  the 
sea;  for  this  new-born  child  of  the  Arctic  frosts  seemed 
loath  to  come  to  rest  in  its  watery  cradle.  And  what  an 
azure  gem  it  was !  glittering  while  it  moved  there  in  the 
bright  sunshine  like  a  mammoth  lapis  lazuli  set  in  a  sea 


A  NAMKOW ESCAPE.  185 

of  chased  silver,  for  the  waters  all  around  were  but  one 
mass  of  foam. 

I  measured  this  iceberg  afterwards  and  found  its  height 
above  the  surface  of  the  water  to  be  one  hundred  and 
forty  feet,  which,  supposing  the  same  proportions  to  con- 
tinue all  the  way  down,  would  give  a  total  depth  of  elev- 
en hundred  and  twenty  feet,  since  the  proportion  of  ice  be- 
low to  that  above  is  as  one  to  seven.  Its  circumference 
was: almost  a  mile.  No  wonder  that  its  birth  was  attend- 
ed with  such  fearful  consequences. 

The  part  which  had  been  the  top  of  the  glacier  had  be- 
come the  bottom  of  the  iceberg.  The  fragment,  when  it 
broke  off,  had  performed  an  entire  half-revolution.  Hence 
it  was  that  no  part  of  it  was  white.  But  as  the  day  wore 
on  the  delicate  hue  which  it  first  showed  vanished,  and 
before  the  berg  finally  disappeared  down  the  fiord  it  wore 
the  usual  opaque  white  which  distinguishes  its  older  broth- 
ers who  have  drifted  in  Baffin's  Bay  for  perhaps  a  score 
of  years. 

As  may  well  be  supposed,  we  did  not  wait  for  another 
iceberg  to  catch  us  in  such  a  defenseless  situation.  Our 
jolly  captain  was  now  quite  content  to  own  that  he  held 
glaciers  in  profound  respect,  and  lost  no  time,  therefore,  in 
picking  up  his  anchor.  Then,  as  soon  as  our  bruised  and 
thoroughly  drenched  artists  were  brought  aboard,  the 
Panther  wheeled  upon  her  heel  and  steamed  over  to  the 
opposite  side,  where,  at  a  more  respectful  distance,  anchor- 
age was  found  which  promised  safety  if  the  glacier  should 
take  upon  itself  once  more  to  perform  such  fantastic  freaks 
as  the  one  of  which  we  had  like  to  have  been  victims ; 
and  we  had  no  mind  now  for  another  such  dangerous  en- 
counter. 


180  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  X. 

ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED. 

WE  named  our  new  harbor  "  Panther  Bay,"  and,  while 
resting  there  until  another  day  comes  to  invite  us  to  new 
work  and  new  adventures,  let  us,  more  critically  than  we 
have  had  opportunity  to  do  before,  examine  into  the  char- 
acter  of  these  icebergs  of  the  Arctic  Sea. 

It  is,  perhaps,  not  surprising  that  so  few  people  should 
really  understand  what  an  iceberg  is,  seeing  how  few  peo- 
ple go  where  they  come  from.  The  icebergs  of  the  North- 
ern hemisphere  have  but  one  birthplace :  they  all  come 
from  Greenland — at  least  all  of  any  magnitude.  There 
are  many  glaciers  in  Spitzbergen,  some  of  which  reach  the 
sea;  but  they  are  of  diminutive  proportions,  and  the 
fragments  broken  from  them  are  few  in  number  and  very 
small.  There  are  many  glaciers  in  Iceland,  but  they  are 
confined  to  the  mountains.  There  are  also  glaciers  upon 
some  of  the  lands  north  of  Hudson's  Bay ;  but,  like  those 
of  Spitzbergen,  they  occupy  a  small  space  compared  with 
the  vast  accumulations  of  Greenland.  And  from  Green- 
land they  discharge  mostly  on  the  Baffin's  Bay  side.  In  a 
former  chapter  we  have  observed  how  the  ocean  current 
comes  from  the  north  along  the  eastern  coast  of  Green- 
land, freighted  with  ice-fields  (not  bergs),  sometimes  bear- 
ing trees  from  the  Siberian  forests.  This  current  sweeps 
thence  around  Cape  Farewell,  and  continues  north  along  the 
Greenland  coast,  with  greater  or  less  velocity,  to  almost 
the  seventy-fifth  or  seventy-sixth  parallel  of  latitude,  before 
taking  a  westerly  course,  and  then  again  a  southerly  one 


ICEBERGS   CRITICALLY  EXAMINED.  187 

to  the  coasts  of  Labrador,  Newfoundland,  and  the  United 
States.  The  icebergs  are  discharged  by  the  fiords  into 
this  current,  and  the  result  is  that,  unless  there  should  be 
a  prevalence  of  strong  northerly  winds  for  a  considerable 
time,  sufficient  to  force  them  against  or  across  the  current 
and  out  into  the  Atlantic,  their  drift  is  northerly  at  all 
parts  of  the  coast  up  as  far  as  Melville  Bay.  The  easterly 
winds,  however,  affect  them ;  and  they  are  in  great  num- 
bers blown  across  Baffin's  Bay  until  they  touch  the  south- 
erly-setting current,  when  they  drift  down  into  the  North 
Atlantic,  as  if  for  no  other  purpose  than  to  annoy  the 
crews  and  captains  of  Liverpool  packets  and  other  craft 
sailing  in  those  waters. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that,  unless  driven  by  the  wind, 
they  never  leave  the  great  Polar  current  of  the  Spitz- 
bergen  and  Greenland  seas,  and  the  waters  of  the  Labra- 
dor— a  current  which  is  a  mighty  one  and  has  worked 
mighty  changes  on  the  surface  of  the  earth.  We  all  know 
and  can  trace  its  course  now,  but  that  course  was  once 
very  different.  In  a  remote  geological  age  it  must  have 
swept  over  the  greater  part  of  what  is  now  North  Amer- 
ica, when  that  land  was  the  bed  of  the  ocean,  just  as  at 
the  present  time  it  sweeps  over  the  growing  Banks  of 
Newfoundland.  Then  Lake  Superior  discharged  into  it  as 
a  gulf:  afterwards,  when  this  gulf  became  an  inland  sea, 
Huron  and  Michigan  were  the  outlets ;  afterwards  Erie, 
then  Ontario,  now  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  which  latter 
will,  no  doubt,  in  the  course  of  time,  form  another  fresh- 
water lake  of  the  great  chain,  as  the  sea  becomes  more  and 
more  filled  up. 

We  have  seen  already  that  many  of  the  icebergs  that 
drift  down  with  this  current  carry  imbedded  in  them 
vast  quantities  of  rock  and  sand,  which  are,  necessarily, 
deposited  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea  when  the  iceberg  melts. 


188  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Thus  do  they  add  something  every  year,  as  we  have  also 
seen,  to  the  Newfoundland  shoals,  and  likewise  strew  the 
ocean  bed  along  their  path  with  gatherings  from  the  Green- 
land hills.  When  these  now  submerged  regions  come  to 
be  elevated  above  the  sea,  the  geologists  of  that  day  will 
have  less  trouble  to  account  for  the  boulders  being  there 
than  our  forefathers  had  to  explain  the  presence  of  similar 
masses  of  rock  on  the  Illinois  prairie,  or  in  the  valleys  of 
the  Mohawk  and  Connecticut  rivers. 

The  melting  of  an  iceberg  is  far  from  rapid.  Many 
years  are  required  to  mingle  its  crystals  with  the  waters 
of  the  ocean.  Yet  its  rate  of  drift  being  slow  (and  it  may 
be  held  for  years  grounded  among  a  cluster  of  islands  or 
among  shoals),  and  the  distance  great,  by  the  time.it  has 
reached  the  track  of  vessels  the  largest  part  of  it  has  dis- 
appeared ;  and,  immense  though  they  sometimes  appear  to 
be  when  seen  from  the  decks  of  ships  crossing  to  and  fro 
between  America  and  Europe,  they  are  then  but  a  frag- 
ment of  their  former  greatness.  Indeed,  very  few  of  them 
ever  reach  so  low  a  latitude  at  all,  going  to  pieces,  little 
by  little,  long  before  the  current  has  carried  them  so  far. 

A  very  homely  illustration  will  bring  an  iceberg  more 
clearly  to  the  mind  of  the  reader  who  has  never  seen  one 
than  the  most  elaborate  description. 

Observe  the  little  bit  of  ice  that  clinks  in  your  tumbler 
at  dinner-time.  Observe  it  closely,  and  you  will  perceive 
how  very  small  a  part  of  it  floats  above  the  surface  of  the 
water.  That  part  is  about  one-tenth,  but  it  floats  in  fresh 
Avater.  Change  it  to  sea-water,  and  the  part  above  would 
be  one-eighth.  Now  this  little  bit  of  ice  is  an  iceberg  in 
miniature  —  an  iceberg  in  every  essential  feature  except 
that  it  did  not  in  all  human  probability  come  from  Green- 
land. In  form,  in  general  transparency,  in  the  play  of 
light  upon  it,  in  its  prismatic  character,  in  the  shape  of  its 


ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED.  189 

projecting  tongues  which  lie  beneath  the  surface  of  the 
water,  in  the  delicate  mist  which  plays  around  it  in  the 
warm  air,  it  is  the  very  image,  on  a  small  scale,  of  those 
great  monoliths  of  the  Arctic  frost  which  come  sailing 
down  Baffin's  Bay  with  the  Polar  current  in  all  their  state- 
ly grandeur  and  magnificence. 

It  is  difficult  for  the  imagination  to  conceive  of  the 
great  magnitude  of  some  of  these  Greenland  icebergs; 
and  yet,  as  we  have  seen,  they  are  but  comparatively 
trifling  pieces,  torn  by  the  sea  from  glaciers.  The  iceberg 
is  indeed  as  the  paring  of  a  finger-nail  to  the  whole  body, 
when  compared  to  the  quantity  of  ice  in  the  reservoir 
from  which  it  came.  Magnify  the  bit  of  ice  in  your  tum- 
bler until  it  becomes  to  your  imagination  half  a  mile  in 
diameter  each  way,  and  you  have  a  mass  that  is  far  from 
uncommon.  Add  to  this  a  mile,  two  miles  of  length,  and 
you  have  what  may  be  sometimes  seen.  I  have  sailed 
alongside  of  an  iceberg  two  miles  and  a  quarter  before 
coming  to  the  end  of  it.  Yet  this  is  not  greater,  in  pro- 
portion to  the  entire  Greenland  accumulation,  than  the 
little  bit  of  ice  in  your  tumbler  is  to  the  immense  stores 
which  the  ice  monopolists  have  in  their  store-house  when 
they  stand  ready  to  avow,  and  do  avow,  that  the  stock  is 
nearly  exhausted,  and  that  they  propose  to  double  their 
charges  on  you  just  when  the  hottest  weather  oppresses 
the  city. 

The  name  iceberg  signifies  ice-mountain,  and  mountain- 
ous it  truly  is  in  size.  Lift  it  out  of  the  water,  and  it  be- 
comes a  mountain  five  hundred,  a  thousand,  two  thousand, 
or  three  thousand  feet  high.  In  dimensions  it  is  as  if  the 
city  of  New  York  were  turned  adrift  in  the  Atlantic,  or 
the  Central  Park  were  cut  out  and  launched  in  the  same 
place.  And  an  iceberg  of  the  dimensions  of  Central  Park 
is  far  from  unusual.  In  general  outline  of  surface  the  re- 


190  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

semblance  is  often  equally  good.  It  is  undulating  like  the 
Park,  and  craggy,  and  is  crossed  by  ravines  and  dotted 
with  lakes — the  waters  of  which  are  formed  from  the  melt- 
ed snows  of  the  late  winter,  which  have  fallen  upon  it,  and 
also  of  the  ice  itself,  after  the  snows  have  disappeared  be- 
fore the  rays  of  the  summer's  sun.  In  such  a  lake  I  have 
even  once  bathed,  although,  I  am  glad  to  say,  but  once, 
and  that  was  in  "  the  days  of  other  years,"  when  the  youth- 
ful impulse  was  strong  to  say  "  I  have  done  it !" — a  dis- 
ease which  I  believe  to  be  amenable  only  to  that  treat- 
ment popularly  known  as  "  sad  experience."  Skating  on 
an  iceberg  lake  is  more  satisfactory  and  sensible,  though 
it  is  just  as  well  to  give  an  iceberg  as  wide  a  berth  as 
possible,  and  have  as  little  to  do  with  it  as  you  can  at 
all  times,  for  it  is  liable  to  go  to  pieces  (though  this  rare- 
ly happens  in  winter)  when  you  are  least  expecting  it.  I 
have  often  climbed  them,  however,  and  with  different  mo- 
tives ;  sometimes  to  aid  in  watering  the  ship  (for  the  lakes 
upon  them  are  of  the  best  and  purest  water) ;  sometimes 
to  obtain  a  distant  view;  at  other  times  for  the  mere 
purpose  of  curiosity  and  adventure.  Ordinarily,  a  slope 
may  be  found  by  which  the  ascent  can  be  made  without 
difficulty,  but  sometimes  spikes  in  the  heels  and  a  boat- 
hook  in  the  hand  become  necessary.  Frequently,  how- 
ever, the  sides  are  quite  vertical  all  around,  and  it  can  not 
be  scaled  at  all.  On  one  occasion,  I  measured  an  iceberg 
that  presented  on  one  of  its  sides  a  vertical  wall  that  rose 
three  hundred  and  fifteen  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea. 
Another  one  that  I  saw  in  the  upper  part  of  Baffin's  Bay, 
and  measured  carefully,  I  will  describe  minutely.  The 
sea  was  quite  smooth,  and  the  day  calm,  so  that  I  enjoyed 
a  most  excellent  opportunity,  such  an  one  as  I  never  had 
before,  and  probably  shall  never  have  again. 

This  iceberg  was  not  only  remarkable  for  its  size,  but 


ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED.  191 

for  its  great  variety  of  feature.  I  rowed  all  the  way  around 
it,  and  measured  it  as  carefully  as  possible.  One  of  its 
sides  was  nearly  straight  and  regular,  having  the  appear- 
ance of  being  recently  broken  from  the  glacier.  When 
facing  the  sun,  it  glistened  marvellously.  This  side  was 
six  thousand  five  hundred  feet  long — over  a  mile  and  a 
quarter.  At  one  end  it  was  two  hundred  and  forty  feet 
high,  rising  squarely  from  the  sea.  At  the  centre  the 
height  was  less,  being  only  one  hundred  and  sixty  feet ; 
at  the  other  end  it  was  one  hundred  and  ninety. 

These  measurements  were  made  with  as  much  accuracy 
as  was  attainable  under  the  circumstances,  and  are  quite 
reliable  within  small  limits.  The  log-line  and  chronome- 
ter— the  one  to  measure  distance,  the  other  to  note  time — 
were  of  necessity  the  means  of  obtaining  the  length.  For 
the  height  I  dropped  the  "  chip  "  at  the  base  of  the  berg, 
and  then,  rowing  out  a  hundred  fathoms,  I  had  a  tolerably 
good  base-line  for  obtaining  the  altitude — a  pocket-sex- 
tant giving  me  the  necessary  angles.  Say  that  I  made  a 
mistake  of  twenty-five  feet,  it  is  yet  near  enough  for  all 
practical  purposes.  It  was  big  enough  in  all  conscience, 
any  way. 

In  measuring  my  lengths  I  was  not  so  liable  to  error, 
and  in  the  same  manner  as  before  I  found  one  end  of  the 
berg  to  be  eighteen  hundred  feet  across.  Here  it  termi- 
nated in  a  rounded  bluff  that  was  one  hundred  and 
twenty  feet  high. 

Turning  at  the  base  of  this  rounded  bluff,  I  came  upon 
a  side  wholly  different  from  the  one  I  had  before  meas- 
ured. It  had  evidently  been  for  a  long  time  the  front  of 
the  glacier — perhaps  for  a  period  of  fifteen  or  twenty 
years,  or  even  more.  It  was  everywhere  irregular.  In 
places  it  was  cliff-like,  as  was  the  other,  but  for  the  most 
part  it  was  worn  into  all  sorts  of  irregular  shapes.  This 


192  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

had  been  done  partly  by  the  washings  of  the  sea,  partly  by 
the  sun,  and  partly  by  the  streams  of  water  which  poured 
from  the  glacier  while  this  iceberg  was  a  part  of  it.  There 
were  bays  in  the  side  of  it  large  enough  to  float  a  frigate. 
The  Panther  might  have  gone  in  and  turned  around  upon 
her  heel  without  fear  of  striking. 

In  another  place  there  was  a  considerable  bay,  with  two 
ice  islands  in  it  that  were  very  peculiar.  To  this  bay 
they  were  as  Governor's  Island  and  Ellis's  Island  to  the 
bay  of  New  York,  and  they  had  as  firm  a  foundation, 
but  the  bottom  upon  which  they  rested  was  ice.  They 
were  mere  hummocks,  and  the  water  on  the  berg  was  quite 
shoal.  Yet  we  went  in  at  least  a  hundred  yards  before 
we  reached  the  shore  of  it,  all  the  while  being  really  on 
the  iceberg,  for  the  ice  projected  away  out  beneath  us ; 
and  as  I  looked  over  the  side  of  the  boat  down  through 
the  clear  bright  water,  which  we  were  shoaling  constantly, 
I  thought  I  had  never  seen  any  thing  more  exquisitely 
soft,  tender,  and  transparent  in  color  than  the  green  of  the 
sea,  nor  had  I  ever  seen  a  more  perfectly  graduated  tint 
than  that  from  the  deep  water  when  we  first  came  over 
the  ice  to  the  margin  of  the  bay.  It  was  as  if  we  sailed 
through  liquid  emerald. 

I  "landed"  upon  the  shore  of  this  bay  and  climbed  the 
iceberg.  It  was  not  an  easy  climb,  even  with  the  aid  of 
steel  spikes  in  my  heels  and  a  boat-hook  in  my  hand.  In 
places  the  ascent  was  very  steep,  and  had  I  lost  my  foot- 
ing I  should  have  slid  down  at  a  fearful  pace  into  the  sea. 

Upon  reaching  the  surface  I  found  it  to  be  rolling,  and 
much  broken.  There  were  two  conspicuous  hills  upon  it, 
one  of  which  was  two  hundred  and  ninety,  the  other  two 
hundred  and  seventy  feet  above  the  sea-level.  At  least 
this  was  the  record  of  my  barometer.  Between  these 
hills  and  among  others  less  conspicuous,  I  discovered  a 


ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED.  193 

lake  a  quarter  of  a,  mile  long.  Its  course  was. winding  like 
the  lake  of  Central  Park,  which  it  resembled  in  size.  I  fol- 
lowed along  its  shore  until  I  found  the  outlet,  and  there, 
through  a  narrow  gorge,  the  overflow  of  the  lake  was 
rushing  over  a  crystal  bed  in  a  rapid  torrent,  until  coming 
at  length  to  the  side  of  the  berg  the  pure  cold  stream 
leaped  wildly  down  into  the  ocean,  roaring  like  a  youthful 
Niagara,  and  breaking  into  spray.  On  every  side  there 
were  indeed  streamy,  most  of  them  quite  small,  so  that  the 
whole  iceberg  was  shedding  water  on  every  side,  and  the 
constant  sound  of  innumerable  cascades  charmed  the  ear 
with  their  ceaseless  roar. 

From  the  lake  I  wandered  about  among  the  icy  hills 
until  I  grew  bewildered,  and  I  found  my  way  back  to  the 
place  of  ascent  not  without  embarrassment.  The  cause 
of  this  was  partially  explained — the  iceberg  was  revolv- 
ing ;  and,  as  I  steered  my  course  back  by  the  sun,  I  natu- 
rally mistook  the  direction  until  I  had  discovered  what 
was  wrong,  when  I  began  to  look  for  the  two  hills  first 
mentioned,  by  which  I  recovered  my  bearings,  and  was 
soon  on  the  right  track  again.  Upon  climbing  these  ice- 
hills,  I  obtained  a  grand  view.  The  whole  sea  was  stud- 
ded with  icebergs — hundreds  of  them  there  must  have 
been — of  every  conceivable  shape,  from  the  great  wall- 
sided  mass  that  looked  like  a  huge  castle  to  the  colossal 
effigy  of  some  winged  monster  floating  upon  the  sea. 

Although  on  an  iceberg,  I  was  not  without  life  to  keep 
me  company.  A  flock  of  kittiwake  gulls  flew  about  my 
head,  and,  perching  upon  a  hill,  set  up  their  noisy  chatter ; 
and  one  old  burgomaster  gull,  who  had  caught  a  fish, 
came  there  to  swallow  it  in  peace.  But,  to  his  evident 
surprise  and  sad  disgust,  he  was  suddenly  pounced  upon 
by  a  predatory  jager,  who  had  seemingly  been  hovering 
round  for  just  such  a  chance  ;  and,  with  an  angry  scream, 

I 


m  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

the  burgomaster,  who  had  started  off  when  he  saw  his  en- 
emy, gave  up  his  prize,  which  the  jager  quickly  caught  in 
mid-air. 

It  was  altogether  a  strange  sensation,  afloat  at  so  great 
an  elevation  on  an  ice-mountain  in  the  sea.  Yet  my  foot- 
stool was  firm  and  solid  as  the  eternal  hills. 

Had  time  and  circumstances  admitted,  I  should  gladly 
have  carried  up  my  camp-fixtures  and  remained  there  for 
a  day  or  so  watching  the  grand  panorama  of  the  hills  and 
sea,  while  the  sun,  like  a  golden  wheel  in  the  blue  sky, 
rolled  around  me,  changing  from  hour  to  hour  the  aspect 
of  every  object  within  the  range  of  vision — now  silver- 
*  ing  an  iceberg,  now  coloring  it,  while  it  floated  sometimes 
in  a  sea  of  blue,  and  again  of  green ;  now  blazing  with  red 
the  rugged  cliffs  of  the  fiord  ;  now  throwing  them  in  shad- 
ow, as  if  they  were  the  gloomy  walls  encompassing  the 
abyss  of  Dante's  Giants ;  now  gilding  the  distant  mount- 
ains, now  robing  them  in  purple ;  now  silvering  the  far- 
off  mer  de  glace,  then  melting  it  'into  a  sea  of  rubies,  or 
blending  it  with  the  blue  sky ;  for  such  scenes  I  have  oft- 
en witnessed  in  the  Arctic  seas,  though  not  from  the  sum- 
mit of  an  iceberg. 

But  this  camp  on  the  iceberg  was  not  possible;  so, 
when  I  had  found  my  way,  I  descended  from  my  lofty  el- 
evation to  the  boat,  and  then,  pulling  on  around  the  berg, 
completed  my  survey  of  it. 

The  scenery  was  much  varied  as  we  passed  along.  At 
one  time  we  were  beneath  a  dismantled  tower;  at  another 
time,  a  ruined  spire ;  then  a  deep  cleft  of  blue  or  a  dark 
cavern  of  green,  in  which  the  slow-moving  billows  were 
caught  and  confined,  until,  as  if  tired  of  their  imprison- 
ment, their  hollow  voices  came  gurgling  out  like  the  loud 
breathing  of  some  mighty  monster  of  the  deep  exhausted 
with  his  efforts  to  move  the  mountain  from  his  path. 


ICEBERGS  CRITICALLY  EXAMINED.  195 

The  side  along  which  we  were  now  passing  proved  to 
be  six  thousand  feet  in  length.  The  end  beyond  was  thir- 
ty-five hundred.  Thus,  in  making  the  complete  circuit 
of  the  iceberg,  we  had  pulled  almost  three  and  a  half 
miles. 

The  altitude  of  the  berg  I  averaged  at  one  hundred  and 
eighty  feet  above  the  sea-level,  which  would  give  a  total 
average  depth  of  fourteen  hundred  and  forty  feet,  or  more 
than  a  quarter  of  a  mile.  Multiply  these  figures,  and  we 
obtain  a  total  cubical  contents  of  23,850,000,000  feet. 
Convert  this  into  tons,  and  all  the  carrying  capacity  of  all 
the  ships  in  the  world  are  as  nothing  to  it.  Freight  them 
all  with  ice  cut  from  it,  and  an  impression  would  hardly 
be  made  upon  it.  It  is  only  by  such  figuring  that  we  can 
form  any  thing  like  an  adequate  idea  of  the  enormous  mag- 
nitude of  this  huge  vagrant  of  the  Arctic  seas.  Its  beau- 
ties are  not  defined  so  readily.  Solid  and  mighty,  it  is  yet 
a  subtle  object.  The  light  plays  through  it  as  through 
the  opal.  Flashes  of  every  color  come  from  it.  Here  we 
see  the  emerald,  there  chalcedony ;  and  again  transparent 
quartz  or  sapphire,  the  topaz  or  the  ruby,  as  the  sun's 
rays  dart  through  its  sharp  angles,  or  the  tintings  of  the 
clouds  are  reflected  from  its  sides. 

More  than  this  I  can  not  say  of  the  floating  ice-mount- 
ain. Words  fail  utterly  in  the  description  of  such  a 
mighty  work  of  nature — fail  us  as  completely  as  do  the 
pigments  of  the  painter.  Who  could  paint  or  who  de- 
scribe the  leap  of  Niagara,  or  the  roar  that  rises  from  the 
great  abyss  ?  At  best,  the  effort  of  the  artist  gives  but  a 
vague  idea  of  the  truth.  The  iceberg — in  its  birth,  growth, 
and  immensity ;  in  the  varying  phases  which  it  presents  at 
different  times ;  the  subtle  quality  of  the  light  and  color 
which  play  around  it — is  utterly  beyond  the  reach  of  art. 
And  who  could  paint,  or  who  describe  its  age?  Noth- 


196  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

ing  but  actual  observation  will  even  so  much  as  suggest 
the  long  period  occupied  in  its  formation.  Close  inspec- 
tion will  reveal  an  infinite  number  of  lines  of  stratifica- 
tion, which,  like  the  multiplied  rings  of  the  old  forest  oak, 
mark  the  years  of  its  increase,  and  tell  of  the  untold  ages 
during  which  it  was  growing  in  the  parent  glacier ;  but 
there  is  nothing  in  it  or  about  it  to  fix  the  period  when 
the  hardened  snow-flakes  which  compose  it  were  first 
dropped  upon  the  Greenland  hills;  nothing  to  show  its 
steady  growth  through  the  recurring  cycles  of  time. 


MAN  VERSUS  MOSQUITOES.  197 


CHAPTER  XL 

MAN  VERSUS  MOSQUITOES. 

ON  the  morning  after  we  had  anchored  in  Panther  Bay 
I  went  ashore  to  stake  off  a  base-line,  preliminary  to  a 
survey  of  the  glacier  and  surrounding  region,  in  which 
operation  I  was  kindly  assisted  by  two  of  my  shipmates 
and  Peter  Motzfeldt.  We  had  a  clear  level  space  of  half 
a  mile  for  our  work ;  but  the  operation  was  attended  with 
some  difficulty  on  account  of  the  willow  and  birch  bushes, 
which  were  about  four  feet  high — too  high  to  clamber 
through  readily,  and  too  thick  to  allow  of  crawling.  But 
this  was  not  the  worst.  When  the  sun  was  fairly  up  we 
were  sweltering  in  heat,  and  the  mosquitoes,  coming  out  in 
swarms,  excelled  any  thing  I  have  ever  seen.  We  perse- 
vered, however,  and  reached  the  glacier,  close  beside  which 
we  put  up  our  last  stake  and  fixed  our  last  station.  To 
observe  with  the  instrument  was,  however,  not  possible. 
The  eye  was  blinded  by  mosquitoes,  the  lenses  were  cov- 
ered with  them;  the  air  was  positively  thick  with  them. 
They  were  in  the  mouth,  they  were  in  the  nostrils,  they 
were  down  the  neck,  they  were  everywhere,  inside  and 
outside  the  body.  We  breathed  mosquitoes  into  the 
lungs  and  took  them  into  the  stomach.  It  was  not  that 
a  swarm  rose  here  and  there  from  the  marshy  places  or 
from  among  the  bushes,  but  they  hovered  over  the  plain 
in  a  misty  cloud. 

I  tried  to  return  upon  my  track  and  take  some  sights, 
but  the  thing  was  impossible.  Human  nature  could  bear 
it  no  longer.  I  turned  back,  and,  joining  my  comrades, 


198  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

together  we  made  a  break  for  the  glacier,  and,  clambering 
up  its  sloping  side,  we  found  a  convenient  perch,  and  from 
our  cool  retreat  looked  down  upon  the  scene  of  our  re- 
cent battle,  and,  in  peace,  soothed  our  wounds.  Our  ene- 
mies did  not  dare  venture  on  the  ice,  and  we  had  got  the 
best  of  them  at  last. 

And  we  had  besides  a  very  convenient  situation  for  ob- 
serving the  movements  of  our  friends,  the  artists,  who  were 
ashore  photographing  and  sketching  the  glacier  from 
every  available  point.  They  had  their  heads  covered 
with  mosquito  nettings  at  first;  but  that  did  not  appear 
to  make  any  difference.  The  mosquitoes  got  through  and 
under  them,  in  one  way  or  another,  and  the  nettings  were 
torn  off.  Then  they  flirted  them  about  their  heads,  and 
for  an  instant  cleared  a  breathing  space,  but  as  soon  as  the 
work  was  resumed,  back  they  came.  The  oil  sketches  of 
the  artists  became  like  geological  formations  which  repre- 
sent innumerable  trilobites  imbedded  in  the  strata.  Blob 
was  so  confused  with  his  incessant  efforts  to  keep  his  eyes 
cleared  out,  that  he  actually  could  not  tell  sky  from  wa- 
ter, nor  ice  from  rock,  when  he  came  to  expose  his  sketches 
in  the  cabin. 

But  the  photographers  had  the  worst  of  it;  the  "colo- 
nel" (who  was  first  operator)  especially,  for  he  had  to 
focus  his  instrument,  which  proceeding  required  time  and 
care ;  and  the  agony  of  that  interval  of  enforced  quiet  was 
most  intense,  if  we  might  judge  from  the  fierce  pawing, 
and  stamping,  and  running  to  and  fro  that  followed,  all  of 
which  would  have  been  very  amusing,  had  we  not  known 
by  experience  that  it  was  very  distressing  and  very  pain- 
ful. Then  the  insects  got  into  the  instrument  and  ruined 
the  plates,  which  was  a  still  further  aggravation.  The 
"  major,"  who  was  second  operator,  could  do  nothing  satis- 
factorily in  "  developing,"  for  they  filled  his  tent  in  place 


MAN  VERSUS  MOSQUITOES.  199 

of  air.  Like  ourselves,  they  were  all  finally  forced  to  own 
defeat,  and,  darting  for  our  perch  upon  the  ice,  escaped  the 
torture.  From  this  safe  retreat  we  managed  to  raise  sig- 
nals of  distress,  and  a  boat  coming  to  the  shore,  we  made 
a  bold  dash  for  the  beach,  and,  getting  on  board,  were  at 
last  in  safety,  for  they  did  not  venture  so  far  out  to  sea. 
Our  faces  were  swollen,  like  a  prize-fighter's  fresh  from 
battle. 

Here,  so  close  to  such  a  great  body  of  ice,  we  thought  it 
strange,  at  first,  to  find  the  temperature  so  high ;  but,  in 
that  locality,  to  be  attacked  by  mosquitoes  surprised  as 
much  as  it  disgusted  us.  They  were  even  much  worse 
than  at  the  ruins  in  Ericsfiord,  where  there  was  no  ice 
at  all. 

Late  in  the  day,  when  the  sun  was  getting  low,  and 
the  heat  was  less,  the  work  was  resumed  under  better 
auspices,  and  in  the  morning  the  labor  was  finished.  I 
had  in  my  port-folio  as  complete  a  map  as  was  needful  for 
my  purposes,  excepting  some  sights  that  I  wished  from 
the  summit  of  the  glacier,  and  these  we  proposed  to  ob- 
tain immediately. 

While  we  were  fighting  the  mosquitoes  several  icebergs 
broke  away  from  the  glacier  with  a  very  grand  effect ; 
but  we  were  too  much  distressed  to  enjoy  the  scene  fully, 
as  we  had  been  before  too  much  alarmed.  So,  after  all,  al- 
though we  had  very  lively  impressions  of  the  commotion 
caused  by  the  birth  of  an  iceberg,  there  was  always  some 
disturbing  element  to  make  the  scene  something  less  than 
perfect.  However,  after  our  ignominious  retreat  from 
fighting  the  mosquitoes,  when,  from  our  new  anchorage, 
we  could  watch  the  glacier  with  perfect  security,  we  had 
the  good-fortune  to  see  a  berg  somewhat  larger  than  the 
first,  broken  off  in  the  midst  of  much  the  same  grand  dis- 
turbance of  the  sea.  Having  no  occasion  now  to  look  to 


:iOQ  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

our  safety,  we  watched  the  crash,  and  listened  to  the  loud 
reports  with  the  eagerness  of  fascination.  We  saw  the 
waves  rolling  away  to  the  shore  and  sweeping  over  the 
ice  that  lay  scattered  upon  the  fiord;  we  observed  the 
newly-liberated  iceberg  wallowing  in  the  sea,  and  admired 
it  as  it  floated  off,  slowly  gathering  to  itself  a  white  cloak, 
as  if  its  tints  were  too  delicate  to  bear  the  light  of  day. 


A  PICNIC  ON  THE  GLACIER.  201 


CHAPTER  XII. 

A  PICNIC  ON  THE  GLACIER. 

Two  oomiaks  loaded  with  women,  and  half  a  dozen  men 
in  kayaks,  had  followed  us  up  from  Kraksimeut ;  and  they 
pitched  their  camp  upon  the  shore  as  near  our  vessel  as 
they  could.  An  old  seal-skin  tent  gave  them  shelter; 
the  andromeda  -  leaves  furnished  fuel,  and,  in  considera- 
tion for  some  trifling  service,  the  stores  of  the  Panther 
supplied  them  with  food.  They  were  not  in  any  respect 
an  attractive  party,  and,  even  with  the  best  intentions  in 
the  world  to  play  the  amiable,  I  doubt  if  the  Prince  ever 
made  the  slightest  effort  to  prove  himself  agreeable  to 
these  Kraksimeut  ladies  of  the  oars.  They  were  not  to 
be  compared  to  Maria  and  Concordia,  and  the  rest  of  them 
at  Julianashaab. 

One  difficulty,  however,  was,  that  their  camp  was  unap- 
proachable on  account  of  the  mosquitoes,  which,  however, 
did  not  appear  to  disturb  them.  They  were  sometimes 
seen  to  brush  off  the  insects  when  they  settled  too  heavily 
on  one  spot ;  but  otherwise  they  might  bite  their  fiercest 
and  remain  unnoticed.  They  had  grown  so  accustomed  to 
them  that  even  the  blood  did  not  seem  to  be  poisoned. 

These  people  were,  however,  useful  to  us  in  one  way. 
On  the  last  day  of  our  stay  in  the  fiord,  it  was  determined 
to  scale  the  glacier  in  a  body,  seeing  that  it  might  be  pos- 
sible, after  the  experience  of  the  captain  and  myself.  Ac- 
cordingly, a  party  was  made  up,  and  these  native  men 
and  women,  whose  boots  were  better  adapted  for  climb- 
ing upon  the  ice  than  ours,  were  engaged  to  carry  our  lug- 

12 


:3U2  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

gage,  consisting  of  surveying  instruments,  artists'  materi- 
als, provisions,  and  cooking-fixtures. 

After  crossing  the  mosquito-infested  plain,  we  entered 
the  gorge  between  the  glacier  and  the  rocks,  where  we 
were  free  from  our  pestiferous  enemies.  Thence  we  clam- 
bered along  for  a  little  over  two  miles  before  we  ventured 
to  climb  the  ice.  This  was  almost  a  mile  beyond  where 
the  captain  and  I  had  before  ascended,, 

The  ascent  was  made  with  no  further  difficulty  than 
would  be  experienced  in  climbing  any  steep  hill.  Here 
we  were  not  much  embarrassed  by  crevasses,  for  we  were 
approaching  the  level  plain  mentioned  in  the  former  de- 
scription, where  there  had  been  very  little  disturbance  of 
the  ice.  The  amount  of  foreign  material  was  immense. 
Rocks  weighing  many  tons  were  imbedded  in  the  glacier, 
or  were  lying  loose  upon  the  surface,  owing  to  the  ice 
having  melted  away  and  left  them  free.  These  we  amused 
ourselves  with  rolling  down  the  declivity ;  for  some  of 
them  were  much  rounded  by  ice-action,  and  were  not  so 
large  but  that  they  could  be  raised  with  a  lever  and  two 
or  three  pairs  of  hands. 

When  upon  the  surface,  we  experienced  something  of 
the  same  difficulty  that  had  been  encountered  before  by 
the  captain  and  myself.  In  one  place  only,  however,  was 
the  track  so  rough  as  ours.  Here  there  were  clefts  of 
such  fearful  character  that  it  fairly  made  one  shudder  to 
look  into  them  as  they  yawned  before  us  at  every  few  steps. 
In  order  to  get  on  at  all,  however,  it  was  necessary  that 
some  one  should  take  the  risk  of  the  first  leap.  This  usu- 
ally fell  to  the  lot  of  the  captain  by  his  own  election  ;  for, 
being  both  vigorous  and  fearless,  he  was  usually  at  the 
head  of  the  party ;  and  when  any  place  more  than  ordina- 
rily dangerous  was  encountered,  he  was  heard  to  cry  out 
(from  the  opposite  side  of  the  danger),  "Come  on  !"  But 


A  PICNIC  ON  THE  GLACIEK.  203 

not  every  body  could  come  on,  especially  those  who  car- 
ried burdens ;  so  a  rope  was  thrown  across  and  secured, 
and  a  safe  passage  was  obtained  for  the  entire  party.  Once 
only  was  an  accident  seriously  threatened.  This  occurred 
to  a  man  who  had  put  something  in  him  to  make  his  legs 
unsteady;  and  but  for  the  captain's  rope  he  certainly 
would  have  disappeared  into  the  bowels  of  the  glacier. 
He  was  hauled  up  in  a  lively  state  of  wonder  as  to  "  how 
we  all  got  down  there  ?"  Our  "  fair  "  companions  in  the 
seal-skin  pantaloons  required  very  little  assistance,  and  in 
their  soft-leather  boots  were  more  sure-footed  than  we. 
They  seemed  quite  surprised  at  our  gallant  offers  of  as- 
sistance ;  fcrf  they  had  been  in  the  habit  not  only  of  help- 
ing themselves,  but  their  lords  as  well,  in  every  thing 
where  help  was  possible — a  practice  universal  among  sav- 
ages and  half-civilized  people.  Gallantry  is  a  fine  art,  the 
sentiment  not  being  natural  to  man. 

When  at  length  we  had  reached  the  level  part  of  the 
glacier,  for  which  we  had  directed  our  course,  and  every 
body  that  had.  any  particular  business  to  attend  to  had 
gone  about  it,  the  romance  of  a  picnic  was  illustrated  in 
form,  if  not  in  fact,  by  an  improvised  dance.  The  Prince  of 
course  led  off,  saying,  "  What's  a  picnic  without  a  dance?" 
and  never  did  couples  "  trip  the  light  fantastic  toe  "  upon 
a  spot  apparently  less  adapted  for  it.  Yet,  if  many  of  the 
conditions  of  a  first-class  summer  entertainment  in  the 
open  air  were  wanting,  we  did  not  lack  a  warm  sun,  nor 
merriment,  nor  singing.  The  dancing  did  not  amount  to 
much,  it  must  be  owned.  As  for  the  accompaniments  to 
the  singing,  there  was  the  music  of  a  babbling  brook  which 
flowed  near  by,  across  the  icy  plain  ;  and  right  in  front  of 
us  it  dashed  down  into  a  cleft,  to  seek  the  glacier  bed,  and 
there  mingle  with  the  sub-glacial  river  which  carries  to 
the  sea  the  summer  meltings  of  the  mer  de  glace. 


:>04  THE  LAXD   OF  DESOLATION. 

The  view  from  our  camp  was  one  that  I  shall  long  re- 
member. From  the  midst  of  the  motley  group  of  men 
and  women  that  surround  me,  I  look  to  right  and  left,  and 
there  rise  the  dark,  rugged,  rocky  shores  of  the  glacier, 
and  then,  continuing  away  to  the  south-west,  become  the 
shores  of  the  fiord,  which,  dotted  with  icebergs,  winds 
away  like  a  noble  river,  and,  in  the  distance,  melts  into 
the  ocean.  Turning  in  the  opposite  direction,  I  scan  these 
same  coasts  for  a  few  miles,  and,  like  two  wedges,  there 
they  sink  into  the  white  slope  w.hich  rises  above  them 
and  vanishes  in  the  limitless  distance.  * 

We  were  not  at  any  time  cold.  Our  dinner  was  cap- 
ital, abundant,  and  much  enjoyed,  and  it  was  not  the  less 
appreciated  that  the  labors  of  the  day  were  over,  and  that 
it  was  prepared  without  the  aid  of  the  ship's  cook  and 
steward.  The  artists  had  accomplished  all  they  came 
for ;  and  with  the  same  assistants,  who,  as  before,  had  aid- 
ed me,  I  had  staked  off  a  base-line,  taken  my  angles,  and 
obtained  every  sight  that  w^as  necessary  to  connect  my 
measurements  with  the  same  hill-tops  that  had  been,  my 
guides  in  the  survey  on  the  mosquito-plain.  And  thus  I 
had  all  needful  materials  to  complete  the  map  which  ap- 
pears on  page  162,  and  the  section  on  page  170.  Then, 
amidst  much  enthusiasm,  we  flung  our  flag  to  the  Arctic 
breeze. 

The  reader  may,  perhaps,  regret,  as  I  did,  that  there  was 
so  little  of  thrilling  interest  to  mark  the  day's  adventure. 
It  was  simply  a  novel  experience ;  an  unusual  place  for  a 
picnic — an  unusual  place  to  stand  on  a  warm  midsummer's 
day. 

Such  as  the  day  was,  I  have,  however,  recorded  it,  leav- 
ing the  reader's  imagination  to  supply  whatever  may  be 
lacking  in  the  sentiment  of  the  solitude  and  desolation  of 
our  surroundings.  He  may,  perhaps,  fancy  that  women. 


A  PICNIC'   ON  THE  G LACIER.  205 

dancing,  and  festivity  were  strange  accompaniments  to 
such  a  scene,  as  they  surely  were. 

We  did  not,  however,  care  to  make  the  venture  quite 
complete  by  sleeping  on  the  ice.  Gathering  up  our  traps, 
therefore,  we  made  our  way  back  as  we  had  come,  and, 
arriving  all  safe  on  board,  we  picked  up  our  anchor,  and, 
as  we  steamed  down  the  fiord,  the  wonderful  ice-stream, 
which  had  aiforded  us  so  many  adventures,  melted  away 
in  the  gathering  twilight  of  the  evening. 


206  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

BOUND  FOR  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE. 

HAVING  our  pilot,  Peter  Motzfeldt,  on  board,  we  were 
obliged  to  put  into  Kraksimeut.  After  passing  a  few  hours 
there,  we  made  a  direct  course  for  the  open  sea.  Motz- 
feldt, in  the  generosity  of  his  heart,  insisted  upon  it  that 
we  should  rob  him;  but  even  the  professional  habits  of 
our  trader  would  not  suffer  a  gift  without  a  quid  pro  quo ; 
and  I  trust  that  this  worthy  inhabitant  of  the  solitary 
house  on  the  dreary  island  may  not  have  been  damaged 
by  our  visit. 

Passing  along  near  the  coast,  we  had  a  fine  view  of  the 
mountains  which  rise  there  directly  out  of  the  sea ;  and, 
after  rounding  the  south-western  cape  of  Greenland,  which 
bears  the  name  of  Cape  Desolation,  we  shaped  our  course 
for  Arsut  fiord,  where  the  famous  kryolite  mine  is  situa- 
ted, at  a  place  called  Iviktut.  The  entrance  to  this  fiord 
is  often  seriously  obstructed  with  ice-fields.  We  were  for- 
tunate enough  to  find  it  free,  and,  aided  by  our  excellent 
Danish  charts,  we  got  in  without  trouble. 

A  man  with  a  very  sailor-like  rig  boarded  us,  and,  ad- 
dressing us  in  English,  said  he  was  Captain  Abel  Rey- 
nolds, of  Boston,  agent  of  the  American  Company. 

This  great  kryolite  mine  is  managed  after  a  most  incon- 
venient fashion.  In  the  first  place,  it  is  a  monopoly  of  the 
Danish  crown,  which  has  leased  it  to  a  Danish  company 
for  a  period  of  years,  to  work  upon  a  royalty  of  twenty 
per  cent.  This  Danish  company  have  sold  to  the  Penn- 
sylvania Salt  Company  the  exclusive  right  in  America 


BOUND  FOR  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  209 

to  the  disposal  of  the  ore,  if  such  it  may  be,  for  conven- 
ience, called,  to  the  extent  of  one  half  the  production  of 
the  mine.  This  Pennsylvania  Salt  Company,  having  no 
means  of  transportation  of  its  own,  lets  out  that  part  of 
its  business  to  a  company  in  Boston,  the  Messrs.  Ryder  & 
Crowley,  and  Captain  Reynolds  is  their  Greenland  agent. 
Then  the  Danish  Government  has  its  Regjeringens  Con- 
trolleur,  Captain  Harold  Saxtorph  ;  the  company  has  its 
superintendent,  Herr  S.  Fritz ;  its  assistant-superintendent, 
Herr  H.  Stockfelth ;  and  its  surgeon,  Herr  E.  C.  Nobel ; 
and  a  right  good  set  of  fellows  they  proved  to  be,  if  rather 
numerous  for  the  business.  The  American  agent  made  us 
snug  as  possible  in  the  worst  anchorage  that  ever  was; 
the  controller  entertained  us  hospitably;  while  his  wife 
treated  us  to  the  music  of  a  Yankee  sewing-machine.  To 
the  superintendent  we  were  indebted  for  the  offer  of  any 
amount  of  coals,  which  he  had  there  in  abundance  for  the 
use  of  the  engines  which  he  employs  to  pump  the  water 
from  his  mine;  and  personally  I  had  to  thank  him  for 
much  useful  information,  and  for  the  gift  of  the  only  fine 
specimens  of  kryolite  crystals  that  I  have  ever  seen;  and 
to  his  assistant  I  owed  more  than  thanks  for  a  superb 
photographic  plate  of  the  mine  and  Arsut  fiord,  taken  by 
himself,  and  other  similar  favors.  Nor  was  the  doctor 
lacking  in  the  offer  of  his  services ;  but  luckily  none  of  us 
required  his  professional  attention,  a  circumstance  which 
imposed  a  double  share  of  thankful  acknowledgment. 

This  kryolite  mine  is  really  a  wonderful  affair.  Why 
Nature  should  have  ever  taken  it  into  her  head  to  drop 
this  valuable  mineral  in  Greenland,  and  nowhere  else,  is  n 
puzzling  matter.  •  The  mineral  is  a  fluorate  of  sodium  and 
aluminum  (mostly  the  former),  the  best  specimens  con- 
taining ninety-nine,  the  worst  ninety  per  cent.  Besides 
these,  I  found  iron,  tin,  lead,  silver,  copper,  arsenic,  and 


210  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

molybdenum ;  but  none  of  these  latter  exist  in  sufficient 
quantities  to  make  the  working  of  them  profitable. 

The  soda  is  the  product  which  makes  the  mine  (or  rath- 
er quarry)  valuable.  And  a  mine  of  riches  it  would  be, 
truly,  were  it  anywhere  else  almost  in  the  whole  wide 
world.  Its  great  distance  from  manufacturing  marts; 
the  extraordinary  dangers  attending  the  shipment  of  it, 
owing  to  the  ice;  the  high  royalty  which  the  Govern- 
ment imposes',  and  the  shortness  of  the  season  during 
which  the  miners  can  work,  make  it  comparatively  of  lit- 
tle importance  in  a  commercial  point  of  view.  Yet  one- 
half  the  product  of  the  mine  (six  thousand  tons)  is  an- 
nually shipped  to  Philadelphia,  in  from  fifteen  to  twenty 
vessels,  whence  it  is  carried  by  rail  to  Pittsburg,  to  be 
converted  into  commercial  soda  by  the  Pennsylvania  Salt 
Company,  who  would,  but  for  this  mine  at  Iviktut,  be  com- 
pelled to  make  their  soda  from  artificial  sources. 

The  discovery  of  the  mineral  was  made  by  the  natives 
many  years  ago.  It  is  said  they  used  it  in  a  powdered 
state,  as  civilized  men  do  snuff.  At  first  it  showed  itself 
as  a  little  round,  yellowish  hummock  above  the  general 
gray  of  the  metamorphic  rock  wThich  inclosed  it.  Upon 
coming  to  the  knowledge  of  the  world,  only  a  few  frag- 
ments were  brought  away ;  and  I  can  remember  the  time, 
when  my  mineralogical  studies  first  commenced,  that  to 
obtain  the  smallest  fragment,  even,  of  the  Greenland  kryo- 
lite  was  to  add  to  a  collection  one  of  its  most  rare  and 
costly  minerals.  Now  it  has  no  other  value  than  to  boil 
down  into  soda  for  ordinary  commercial  uses. 

The  mine  has  been  in  operation  under  the  present  com- 
pany about  twelve  years.  An  effort  to  work  it  had  been 
previously  made,  but  failed  for  want  of  capital,  and  under 
the  present  management  it  has  only  lately  been  profitable. 
The  mineral  appears  to  exist  as  a  sort  of  conical  injection 


BOUND  FOR  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  211 

through  the  overlying  rock.  It  is  now  worked  down  un- 
til the  mine,  or  quarry,  is  about  sixty  yards  in  diameter 
and  fifty  feet  deep,  forty  of  which  are  below  the  sea-level ; 
and  since  the  solid  rock  is  interrupted  for  a  short  distance 
on  the  sea-side,  the  water  has  constantly  endangered  the 
mine  by  flooding — a  catastrophe  only  prevented  by  the 
admirable  engineering  skill  of  Mr.  Fritz. 

The  number  of  miners  employed  is  about  one  hundred, 
and  since  there  are  no  settlements  in  the  neighborhood, 
and  therefore  no  natives  to  bring  them  supplies,  their  pro- 
visioning is  entirely  done  from  home.  The  miners  were  a 
well-contented-looking  people,  and,  so  far  as  I  could  see, 
did  not  suffer  in  their  isolated  situation  any  thing  worse 
than  the  torment  of  mosquitoes,  which  there,  as  in  all  oth- 
er parts  of  South  Greenland,  where  the  ice  does  not  over- 
run the  land,  are  thick  as  the  sands  on  the  sea-shore. 

The  kryolite  is  the  only  mineral  product  of  Greenland 
that  has  proved  of  any  commercial  value.  Yet,  judging 
from  the  appearance  of  the  country,  one  might  think 
Greenland  abounded  in  mineral  wealth,  and,  if  properly 
explored,  a  profitable  return  would  certainly  be  obtained. 
An  unsuccessful  effort  was  made  to  work  a  plumbago 
vein  near  Upernavik,  but  to  this  and  the  kryolite  the  min- 
ing operations  of  Greenland  have,  I  believe,  been  confined. 

Unfortunately,  the  day  of  our  visit  to  Iviktut  was  as 
dirty  and  disagreeable  an  one  as  ever  was  seen  even  in  that 
country — rain,  hail,  snow,  wind,  cold,  every  thing  possible 
almost  in  the  way  of  badness.  We  did  not,  therefore,  re- 
main long,  but,  picking  up  our  anchor  again,  we  steamed 
away  once  more,  and,  passing  through  a  narrow  gate-way 
at  the  foot  of  the  Great  Kunak,  or  Arsut  mountain,  as  it  is 
sometimes  called,  we  were  soon  out  at  sea,  heading  north- 
ward for  the  Arctic  Circle,  to  find  the  midnight  sun. 

The  midnight  sun  !    A  word  of  strange  import !    A  new 


212  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

existence  was  to  open  for  us  now,  in  a  summer  of  per- 
petual brightness.  For  days  and  weeks  together  lamps 
would  be  held  in  great  contempt ;  we  would  be  careless 
of  the  hours ;  there  would  be  "  no  morn,  no  noon,  no 
night — no  any  time  of  day ;"  no  time  for  "  turning  in  "  or 
"  turning  out,"  except  as  the  ticking  clock  might  show  us 
what  to  do, 

"In  that  strange,  mysterious  clime,  where  springs 
Are  but  the  twilights  of  the  summer  day ; 
Where  summer  an  eternal  sunshine  brings; 
The  winter,  darkness  and  sublimity — 
"Where  reigns  dread  solitude,  and  rolls  the  Polar  Sea." 


'The  lands  are  there  sun-gilded  at  the  hour 
When  other  lands  are  silvered  by  the  moon — 

The  midnight  hour,  when  down  the  sun  doth  pour 
A  blaze  of  light,  as  elsewhere  at  the  noon." 


PART  THE  THIRD. 
UNDER  THE  MIDNIGHT  SUN. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE. 

WHEN  we  came  to  cross  the  Arctic  Circle,  instead  of 
having  the  midnight  sun,  we  had  no  sun  at  all ;  for  one  of 
those  villainous  fogs,  so  prevalent  during  the  summer  in 
the  Arctic  regions,  set  upon  us  and  hung  about  us,  hiding 
every  thing  for  several  days. 

It  rolled  over  us  like  a  great  wave,  submerging  us  in 
damp  and  darkness.  The  wind  was  southerly,  and  the  air 
was  charged  with  moisture,  which  was  precipitated  by  the 
cold  water  and  icebergs  over  which  it  passed.  I  verily 
believe  there  never  was  such  another  fog.  A  thin  layer 
of  mist  rested  on  the  sea,  above  which  one  could  climb 
and  sit  upon  the  royal  yard  and  be  in  sunshine,  and  from 
that  delightful  elevation  overlook  the  great  waste  of  roll- 
ing vapor,  and  watch  the  glittering  icebergs  now  and  then 
protruding  through  it  into  the  light;  and  in  the  distance 
trace  the  great  white  mountain  peaks,  and  illimitable  gla- 
ciers of  Greenland.  This  was  the  sublime  aspect  of  it; 
but  down  on  deck  there  was  nothing  to  be  seen  at  all. 
Three  ship's  lengths  away  the  atmosphere  was  as  impene- 
trable to  vision  as  a  stone  wall.  From  the  quarter-deck 
we  could  scarcely  see  the  look-out  on  the  forecastle.  The 
fog  trailed  about  the  rigging,  sometimes  in  great  streaks 


216  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

like  festoons  of  white  "  illusion,"  and  down  upon  the  deck 
came  dripping  a  perfect  shower  of  the  condensed  vapor. 
In  five  minutes  every  thing  was  as  wet  as  if  the  clouds 
had  been  dropping  rain.  The  Panther  was  bewildered. 
Her  compasses,  never  reliable  at  the  best  of  times,  were 
here,  in  the  far  North,  utterly  worthless.  Every  compass 
seemed  to  have  an  idea  of  its  own  as  to  where  North  was, 
and  only  changed  its  mind  on  being  vigorously  joggled; 
and  no  two  of  them  agreeing  after  they  were  joggled. 
The  situation  was  rather  embarrassing;  but  for  all  the 
captain  would  not  heave  to.  He  would  keep  going  some- 
where, at  any  rate.  The  danger  was  that  he  might  hit  an 
iceberg.  The  sea  was  dotted  all  over  with  them.  "All 
right,"  said  the  captain ;  "  I  don't  think  we'll  hurt  it  much  !" 

That  we  should  have  a  chance  of  proving  it  seemed  the 
most  likely  thing  in  the  world ;  for  we  sometimes  heard 
from  them  as  the  billows  broke  against  their  sides  or 
rolled  within  their  wave-worn  caverns,  and  their  smoth- 
ered voices  were  often  painfully  near ;  yet  we  did  not  see 
any  of  the  bergs  themselves,  until  suddenly  there  came  a 
thrilling  cry  from  the  look-out,  "  Ice  close  aboard — dead 
ahead  ! "  This  warning  went  through  the  ship  as  if  it 
had  been  "breakers" — the  worst  of  all  sounds  to  hear. 
The  captain  said  never  a  word,  but  rang  his  bell,  "  Stop 
her"— "Back  astern "—" Full  speed!" 

The  cabin  was  cleared  in  a  twinkling,  and  the  people 
rushed  on  deck  in  a  violent  state  of  alarm,  to  see  before 
them  a  huge  mass  of  whiteness  looming  through  the  fog. 
It  seemed  impossible  that  we  should  escape  it.  Notwith- 
standing the  reversal  of  the  screw,  we  were  yet  forging 
ahead.  The  moments  were  like  that  terrible  interval  on  a 
railway  train,  between  the  first  thump  of  the  car  off  the 
track  and  on  the  ties,  and  the  crash  which  follows,  scat- 
tering death  and  destruction.  It  was  one  of  those  short 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  217 

periods  of  one's  life  when  the  memory  is  apt  to  be  remark- 
ably fresh  respecting  misspent  time.  Happily,  this  was 
the  worst  of  it.  The  ship  slewed  to  starboard,  which 
saved  her  jib-boom,  and  by  that  time  the  headway  was 
stopped,  and  we  began  to  go  astern.  But  we  we're  then 
in  the  very  vortex  of  the  breaking  waves — in  the  hissing 
foam  of  the  angry  sea. 

A  few  moments  more,  and  the  iceberg  that  had  caused 
us  such  a  fright  was  swallowed  up  in  the  gloom;  and, 
giving  it  a  wide  berth  this  time,  we  steamed  on  more  cau- 
tiously at  "  dead  slow,"  groping  through  the  worse  than 
darkness  of  the  night. 

We  had  no  further  adventures  of  that  description ;  but 
the  uncertain  currents  of  the  sea,  and  the  unreliable  state 
of  our  compasses,  caused  us  to  become  bewildered  in  our 
course.  We  did  not  once  get  even  a  glimpse  of  the  sun 
for  three  days,  and  of  course  were  running  wholly  by  dead 
reckoning.  The  fog  had  become  so  deep  that  we  could 
no  longer  climb  above  it  and  sit  in  the  sun  on  the  royal 
yard.  "Pd  give  my  old  gun,"  said  the  captain,  weary 
with  watching,  and  disgusted  with  uncertainty — "  I'd  give 
my  old  gun  (a  rare  instrument)  to  know  where  we  are." 

Now  the  captain  had  just  come  into  the  little  cabin, 
which  for  the  cruise  we  had  "  shoved  up "  on  the  main- 
deck  amidships.  The  window  overlooked  the  bulwarks, 
and  the  noises  of  the  deck  and  of  the  machinery  were  kept 
away — a  lucky  circumstance,  for  at  the  very  instant  of 
the  captain's  speech  my  ear  caught  an  ominous  sound.  I 
listened  again  to  make  quite  sure,  and  then  told  the  cap- 
tain that  if  he  kept  on  three  minutes  longer  at  the  present 
rate  of  speed  I  would  claim  the  gun.  "  Where  would  we 
be,  then  ?"  inquired  the  captain,  somewhat  incredulously. 
"On  the  rocks?" 

The  sound  was  unmistakable.  The  low  murmur  that 

K 


218  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

comes  from  the  shore  is  very  different  from  the  loud  roar 
from  the  waves  breaking  on  the  iceberg  in  the  deep  sea, 
and  the  practised  ear  can  quickly  distinguish  the  one  from 
the  other.  The  headway  of  the  ship  was  arrested  as  soon 
as  possible,  and  the  fog  lifting  a  little,  we  could  faintly  see 
the  fatal  line  of  surf.  But  we  had  still  twenty  fathoms 
water  under  us,  and  had  plenty  of  room  to  wheel  round, 
and  crawl  back  upon  our  old  track  until  we  were  beyond 
soundings,  when  we  returned  to  our  old  trade  of  groping 
for  another  day,  at  the  end  of  which,  to  our  great  joy  and 
relief,  and  with  the  sudden  bound  of  a  mouse  popping 
from  its  dark  hole,  we  slid  from  under  the  oppressive  can- 
opy of  vapor  into  the  bright  sunshine.  Indeed,  the  limit 
of  the  fog  was  almost  like  a  wall — sharp  and  well-defined ; 
and  while  the  quarter-deck  was  still  in  shadow,  the  fore- 
castle was  brightly  illuminated.  Fearful  now  that  the  fog 
might  roll  over  us  again,  the  Panther  was  made  to  do  her 
best,  and  we  steamed  on  into  a  scene  of  a  very  different 
description — still,  however,  among  the  icebergs — but  now 
in  a  bright,  instead  of  a  cloudy  atmosphere. 

It  was  fortunate  that  the  fog  terminated  when  it  did, 
for  otherwise  we  would  have  been  in  great  jeopardy.  The 
icebergs  were,  in  fact,  so  numerous,  that  the  horizon  was 
for  a  time  quite  obliterated.  We  turned  and  twisted 
among  them  to  right  and  left,  as  one  would  follow  the  zig- 
zags of  the  Boston  streets,  from  Brattle  Square  to — well, 
any  other  place  you  choose  to  mention. 

We  might  have  been  in  a  state  of  constant  terror  had 
we  not  been  in  a  state  of  constant  admiration.  The  at- 
mosphere from  a  wonderful  fog  changed  to  a  wonderful 
brightness.  I  have  rarely  seen  any  thing  to  compare  with 
it.  The  hour  was  approaching  midnight,  and  the  sun, 
nearing  the  north,  gradually  dipped  until  it  had  touched 
and  finally  passed  close  to  the  horizon,  with  its  upper  limb 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  219 

just  above  the  line  of  waters.  For  some  time  previous 
the  sky  had  been  peculiarly  brilliant;  but  when  the  sun 
went  fairly  down,  the  little  clouds,  which  had  before  been 
tipped  with  crimson,  melted  away,  and  the  whole  sky  be- 
came uniformly  golden ;  while  the  sea,  quite  motionless, 
unruffled  by  even  the  slightest  breath  of  air,  reflected  the 
gorgeous  color  like  a  mirror;  and  the  icebergs,  of  every 
size,  from  the  puny. -fragment  a  few  fathoms  only  in  diam- 
eter to  the  ;enormous  block  hundreds  of  feet  in  height,  and 
of  every  shape,  from  the  wall-sided  semblance  of  a  giant 
citadel  to  the  spired  effigy  of  a  huge  cathedral,  presented 
an  aspect  of  indescribable  brilliancy  as  they  floated  there 
in  the  golden  sea. 

In  color  they  were  wonderfully  varied  —  against  the 
brilliant  sky  dark  purple,  shading  away  to  left  and  right 
into  amethyst,  and  then  into  green  and  blue  and  pearly 
white ;  and  away  behind  us,  against  the  dark  fog-bank 
which  lay  upon  the  waters,  chased  silver ;  while  every- 
where around  were  flecks  of  lustrous  splendor  stolen  from 
the  sky. 

Emerging  from  this  dazzling  brightness,  we  glided  on 
through  the  night  in  view  of  some  of  the  finest  coast 
scenery  of  a  region  where  the  scenery  is  never  tame.  First 
we  passed  under  the  gloomy,  cavernous  Black  Hook;  and 
then  near  the  stupendous  cliffs  of  the  main-land,  which,  cut 
by  deep  gorges,  seemed  like  grim  old  time-worn  columns 
holding  up  against  the  sky  a  vast  white  entablature — the 
great  ice-sea  of  Greenland.  Then  we  came  beneath  one 
of  the  noblest  landmarks  of  the  coast  —  a  cone-shaped 
mountain  rising  from  the  sea,  which  we  had  seen  some 
sixty  miles  or  more  away.  At  first  it  was  but  a  dark 
hummock  against  the  sunset;  now,  through  the  breaks 
in  a  fleecy  cloud  which  girdled  it,  we  caught  occasional 
glimpses  of  its  crest  brightened  by  the  morning  sun. 


220  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

With  helm  a-port,  we  wheeled  in  on  the  south  side  of 
the  mountain,  and  entered,  close  beside  its  base,  a  narrow, 
winding  fiord  as  the  sun  was  dropping  his  earliest  rays 
down  upon  a  silvery  thread  of  ice-incumbered  waters  that 
wound  between  cliffs  of  unparalleled  magnificence.  The 
base  of  the  mountain  formed  the  cliffs  on  our  left,  and,  as 
I  afterwards  determined,  they  were  at  one  point  2870  feet 
high,  ri&ing  so  squarely  from  the  water  that  it  seemed  al- 
most as  if  one  might  drop  a  plumb-line  from  the  summit 
into  it. 

The  mountain  is  an  island  some  ten  miles  in  diameter 
east  and  west,  by  six  north  and  south.  This  line  of  cliffs 
is  almost  uniform  around  its  base,  above  which  the  conical 
top  ascends  quite  regularly  to  an  altitude  of  4500  feet. 
This  is  the  Kresarsoak — the  "  big  mountain  "  of  the  na- 
tives— the  "Sanderson's  Hope"  of  old  John  Davis,  who 
sighted  it  in  1585,  soon  after  he  had  first  discovered  this 
Land  of  Desolation  and  been  so  nearly  wrecked  among 
the  ice  that  beset  it. 

The  cliffs  upon  our  right  were  not  less  lofty  nor  less 
gloomy  than  those  of  the  mountain's  base.  The  fiord 
widened  a  little  by-and-by,  and  we  opened  a  more  cheer- 
ful spot,  where,  for  a  short  distance,  the  cliffs  at  the  base 
of  the  mountain  are  broken  away,  and  the  slope  of  the 
mountain  itself  extends  down  in  an  almost  unbroken  de- 
scent from  the  crest  to  the  sea.  Here  there  are  some 
signs  of  life.  Up  to  about  five  hundred  feet  elevation  the 
slope  is  in  places  green — little  patches  of  mountain  heath- 
er, and  moss  and  stunted  grass,  which  some  flowers  speckle 
with  white  and  yellow.  It  seems  like  a  green  curtain 
hung  across  the  entrance  to  the  interior  of  the  mountain, 
where,  according  to  native  tradition,  dwell  mountain  gi- 
ants. By  this  same  legend  the  mountain  is  but  a  shell, 
the  whole  interior  being  one  great  cave,  which,  if  true, 


THE   PEAK   OF   KEE6ARSOAK. 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  323 

gives  the  giants  plenty  of  room.  Had  we  been  wholly 
unused  to  Greenland  scenery,  we  might  have  imagined 
ourselves  steaming  into  some  mysterious  region  where 
creatures  of  a  supernatural  sort  actually  held  possession 
of  land  and  sea  in  their  own  right ;  for,  as  we  came  near  the 
base  of  the  cliff,  and  directly  under  the  peak  of  Kresarsoak, 
we  detected  something  moving  upon  the  water,  and  loud 
noises  came  floating  on  the  air.  Slacking  our  speed,  until 
there  was  barely  headway  enough  to  keep  us  free  from  the 
icebergs,  we  were  soon  surrounded  by  a  perfect  swarm  of 
amphibious  creatures,  in  all  essential  particulars  like  that 
marine  centaur  of  a  pilot  we  had  fished  up  out  of  Erics- 
fiord.  Despite  the  colder  climate  (for  we  were  now  seven 
hundred  miles  nearer  the  North  Pole  than  then),  they  bore 
no  further  appearance  than  he  had  done  of  being  cold, 
wet  though  they  were.  They  gathered  about  us  on  ev- 
ery side,  and  accompanied  us  with  every  manifestation  of 
delight.  Afterwards  a  boat  came  off  with  four  of  the  same 
fishy-looking  creatures  at  the  oars,  and  a  white  man  at  the 
tiller,  who  was  not  slow  to  announce  himself  as  the  "gov- 
ernor "  of  a  settlement  called  Karsuk,  lying  at  the  base  of 
the  mountain,  on  the  very  green  slope  which  had  attract- 
ed our  attention.  Esac  was  his  name.  A  sorry-looking 
governor,  to  be  sure,  was  Governor  Esac;  but  then  it 
would  never  do  to  allow  a  governor  of  any  -sort  to  pull 
alongside;  so  we  hove  to  and  hauled  him  aboard,  and 
then  let  his  boat  drop  astern  in  tow. 

Governor  Esac  was  in  a  very  bad  way.  He  had  the 
rheumatism,  for  which  what  seemed  to  be  a  suitable  pre- 
scription (as  he  thought  at  least)  was  administered,  and 
when  he  finally  left  us  he  carried  off  a  bottle  of  the  same, 
a  gift  from  the  doctor.  The  medicine  worked  like  a 
charm,  for  the  patient  soon  ceased  his  complaints,  and  de- 
clared himself  in  possession  of  the  very  thing  he  stood 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


most  in  need  of,  which  seemed  very  likely,  seeing  how 
happy  he  looked,  and  great  as  the  prospect  appeared  of 
his  being  more  so. 

Esac's  rheumatism  being  provided  for,  we  pushed  on 
towards  our  place  of  destination,  which  was  a  great  trun- 


ENTERING   THE   FIOED. 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  225 

cated  cone  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  fiord,  and  right 
before  us.  This  truncated  cone  we  came  to  know  right 
well  afterwards.  Its  height  is  2300  feet.  Its  sides  slope 
a  little  only  from  the  perpendicular,  and  at  our  position, 
when  Esac  left  us,  there  was  no  perceptible  break  in  the 
line  of  the  cliff  to  an  altitude  of  1460  feet.  Above,  the 
top  is  more  or  less  ragged,  yet  the  crest  is  nearly  level, 
and  the  whole  aspect  of  the  rock  is  one  of  such  great  sym- 
metry that  it  seems  almost  as  if  it  were  carved  by  man 
for  a  gigantic  monumental  pile. 

Only  by  a  close  inspection  of  it  can  one  realize  its  im- 
mense height.  Even  after  having  visited  and  examined 
it,  I  was  quite  amazed  when  I  came  to  measure  its  dimen- 
sions. We  were,  indeed,  all  much  deceived,  and  none  more 
so  than  the  captain,  who,  when  a  full  mile  away  from  it, 
thought  he  was  quite  as  near  as  it  was  safe  to  go;  and 
accordingly  he  hauled  the  Panther  up  alongside  of  an 
iceberg,  and  tied  her  fast. 

How  rejoiced  were  we  all  now  to  get  once  more  out  of 
the  ship  !  A  "  landing  "  on  the  iceberg  was  easily  effect- 
ed, and  we  ran  about  over  it  as  if  it  had  been  dry  land. 
It  was  comparatively  small,  being  not  over  a  hundred 
yards  in  diameter  by  fifty  feet  in  height,  and  it  was  undu- 
lating on  the  top.  In  the  little  valleys  the  water  which 
the  warm  sun  had  formed  of  the  pure  fresh  ice  had  gathered, 
and  from  one  of  these  little  pools  we  filled  our  water-tanks. 

Satisfied  that  this  was  a  place  for  birds,  I  persuaded  the 
captain  to  take  a  boat  with  me  and  row  towards  the  cliff, 
which,  owing  to  a  strange  optical  illusion,  appeared  to  be 
only  a  few  rods  distant.  To  the  captain's  great  amaze- 
ment we  had  a  pull  of  twenty  minutes  before  reaching  it. 
The  sight  then,  up  or  down,  was  grand.  Upward  the  cliff 
rose  nearly  half  a  mile  above  our  heads :  downward  its 
image  was  repeated  in  the  clear,  bright  waters. 

K2 


THE  LA^\7D    OF  DESOLATION. 


THE  JLUMMB   OF  T1IE   AEOT1O   SEAS. 


A  strange  feature  of  this  cliff,  and  others  of  like  geolog- 
ical formation,  is  that  the  rock  is  fractured  here  and  there 
horizontally,  and  that  scales  have  splintered  off  from  time 
to  time,  leaving  a  series  of  narrow  ledges,  or-  steps,  which 
extend  from  the  very  bottom  to  the  top ;  and  these  ledges 
are  in  the  summer-time  the  home  of  myriads  of  birds. 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CLRCLK  227 

These  birds  are  the  well-known  "  bacaloo  bird  "  of  New- 
foundland and  Labrador,  and  the  St.  Lawrence  region  gen- 
erally, where  they  winter.  They  are  the  lumme  of  the 
Arctic  seas,  and  the  Uria  Brunichii  of  the  naturalist — a 
species  of  what  are  popularly  known  as  "  divers." 

When  about  half  a  mile  away  from  the  cliff  we  began 
for  the  first  time  to  perceive  something  of  its  character. 
Then  birds  came  flying  over  us  in  considerable  numbers. 
Many  of  them  were  on  the  water,  and,  like  all  the  divers, 
who  rise  with  difficulty,  they  made  a  great  noise  about  us 
as  they  prepared  to  take  the  wing,  flapping  along  close 
over  the  surface  of  the  sea.  As  we  kept  nearing  the  cliff 
they  became  still  more  numerous. 

Presently  we  heard  a  murmuring  sound  like  that  of 
distant  falling  waters.  When  we  had  arrived  under  the 
cliff,  this  sound  increased  in  volume,  and  became  so  loud 
that  we  were  obliged  to  elevate  our  voices  to  make  our- 
selves heard  by  each  other.  This  result  was  caused  by 
the  constant  fluttering  of  innumerable  birds,  and  their  in- 
cessant screaming.  Some  of  the  ledges,  or  shelves,  on 
which  they  sat  were  very  narrow,  others  were  two  or 
three  feet  wide ;  some  were  but  a  few  yards  in  length,  oth- 
ers were  many  rods ;  some  were  in  pretty  regular  order, 
one  above  another,  others  were  sloping  and  irregular ;  but 
upon  all  of  them,  from  near  the  water's  edge  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  cliff,  birds  were  sitting,  packed  close  together, 
and  facing  outward — sitting  bolt  upright,  row  above  row, 
crowded  into  the  smallest  possible  compass,  and  looking 
for  all  the  world  like  soldiers  with  white  coats  and  black 
caps  standing  shoulder  to  shoulder  on  parade.  Low  down 
the  birds  were  easily  counted;  but  higher  up  they  melted 
away  into  scarcely  distinguishable  lines  of  whiteness,  and 
higher  still  they  disappeared  from  sight  altogether. 

At  first  it  puzzled  me  to  account  for  their  strange  atti- 


25»  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

tude;  but  when  I  discovered  that  each  female  bird  lays 
but  one  egg,  it  was  readily  explained. 

They  make  no  nest  whatever,  but  lay  their  single  egg 
upon  the  naked  rock.  The  bird  can  only  cover  it,  there- 
fore, by  placing  it  upon  its  end,  which  is  accomplished 


SHOOTING    UJMMK. 


ACliOSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  239 

with  the  bill,  and  then  she  sits  down  upon  it  as  if  it  were 
a  stool. 

After  listening  a  while  to  their  strange  cries,  and  watch- 
ing their  movements,  we  remembered  that  we  had  come 
out  to  try  our  luck  at  shooting.  Our  guns  were  fired  si- 
multaneously, and  down  came  plump  into  the  water  birds 
enough  to  make  a  meal  for  the  whole  ship's  company. 
But  what  a  change  now  there  was  in  the  aspect  of  the 
cliff!  Following  the  discharge  of  the  guns  there  was  an 
instant  of  calm.  It  seemed  as  if  every  scolding  voice  was 
hushed.  Every  bird  had  leaped  into  the  air ;  and  now  the 
wild  flutter  of  their  wings,  as  they  darted  away  from  the 
rock,  was  like  the  rush  of  a  tornado ;  while  they  were  so 
numerous  as  they  passed  over  that  they  threw  a  shadow 
on  us  like  a  cloud.  Having  sprung  from  their  eggs  so 
quickly,  many  of  them  were  left  insecure,  and  a  perfect 
shower  came  spattering  down  the  cliffs. 

But  the  birds  did  not  long  keep  the  air.  They  soon 
lit  upon  the  water,  with  a  great  splash,  about  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  from  the  cliff,  perfectly  blackening  its  surface. 
Some  of  them  did  not  even  go  so  far ;  but,  wheeling  about 
in  mid-air,  they  put  back  in  haste  to  get  once  more  upon 
their  eggs  before  they  had  time  to  cool ;  and  those  who 
took  the  water  quickly  came  back,  despite  the  danger,  to 
shelter  their  precious  treasure  of  a  single  egg. 

Many  of  the  birds  were  now  observed  to  be  in  a  state  of 
violent  anger  with  their  nearest  neighbors,  and,  as  they  sat 
there  upon  their  stools,  they  reminded  me  of  angry  fish- 
wives. With  ruffled  feathers  they  were  continually  scold- 
ing each  other  at  the  very  top  of  their  shrill  voices ;  and, 
not  satisfied  with  this,  they  plucked  out  each  other's  feath- 
ers, and  tried  to  gouge  out  each  other's  eyes.  When  it  is 
borne  in  mind  that  the  birds  must  have  numbered  mil- 
lions, the  volume  of  sound  may  be  well  imagined.  It  was 


230 v  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

at  first  difficult  to  account  for  all  this  disturbance,  except 
upon  the  ground  of  pure  love  of  fight.  Presently,  how- 
ever, I  observed  that  there  was  a  deeper  cause  at  the  bot- 
tom of  much  of  the  difficulty.  Many  of  the  birds  were  in 
fact  arrant  thieves,  and  were  guilty  of  all  manner  of  dis- 
honest devices  to  cover  up  their  crimes.  In  short,  they 
stole  each  other's  eggs,  seemingly  without  compunction  of 
conscience*  The  bird  must  sometimes  leave  her  egg,  for 
she  can  not  remain  there  and  starve  to  death  while  the 
chick  is  hatching.  She  may  be  a  careless  bird,  and  as  she 
leaves  the  ledge,  her  precious  egg  may  roll  off  the  cliff 
after  her  and  thus  be  destroyed;  or  her  neighbors  may 
roll  it  off  while  quarrelling.  Upon  her  return  she  looks 
for  her  egg,  but  does  not  find  it ;  she  at  once  suspects  that 
it  is  lost,  and  knowing  that  to  remain  virtuous  is  to  be 
chickless,  she  instantly  decides  in  favor  of  theft,  and  steals 
the  first  egg  she  can  lay  her  bill  upon;  and  then  down 
she  sits  upon  it  with  as  much  coolness  and  unconcern  as 
if  it  had  belonged  to  her  from  the  beginning.  When  the 
true  owner  of  this  stolen  egg  comes  back,  she  may  steal  in 
like  manner,  or  she  may  accuse  some  other  bird  with  the 
theft.  Perhaps  she  may  accuse  the  right  one;  but  right 
or  wrong,  if  there  is  an  accusation,  there  is  sure  to  be  a 
fight;  and  perhaps,  before  the  fight  is  ended,  the  egg 
which  is  the  cause  of  the  quarrel  may  roll  down  the  cliff; 
and  then  both  birds  get  even  by  turning  thieves  again. 
But  the  egg  is  not  always  left  without  a  protector,  for  the 
male  bird  sometimes  sits  upon  it  while  his  mate  goes  off 
to  feed.  The  poor  fellow,  however,  likes  this  business  lit- 
tle enough,  and  I  observed  that  the  female  did  not  trust 
to  his  faithfulness  to  the  family  interest  holding  out  very 
long,  for  she  invariably  caught  her  breakfast  (small  shrimps) 
as  speedily  as  possible,  gave  herself  a  hasty  dip  in  the  sea 
by  way  of  a  morning  bath,  and  hurried  back ;  whereupon 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE. 


231 


the  uncomfortable  benedict  of  a  lumme  betook  himself  to 
freedom  with  a  scream  and  a  rush  that  is  very  enlivening. 
It  did  not  require  a  great  many  shots  to  satisfy  us  with 
lumme-shooting.  It  was  a  barbarous  sort  of  sport,  and 
verily,  in  the  sportsman's  sense  of  the  word,  there  was 
no  sport  in  it  at  all.  Having  knocked  over  about  twelve 
dozen,  we  returned  on  board,  leaving  the  poor  frightened 
birds  at  such  peace  as  they  might  find  in  the  confused 
state  of  the  private  property  which  must  have  resulted 
from  our  so  often  driving  them  from  their  family  stools. 


Upon  our  return  to  the  Panther  every  boat  was  at  once 
manned,  and  the  hunters  all  set  out  for  the  cliffs.  The 
day  was  calm  and  pleasantly  warm,  and  at  its  close  we 
were  the  richer  by  almost  half  a  ton  of  birds,  after  which 
successful  raid  upon  the  feathered  inhabitants  of  the  cliffs 
we  cast  off  from  the  iceberg,  and  steamed  over  to  the 
little  bay  of  Karsuk,  where  we  found  good  anchorage  with 
sandy  bottom,  and  paid  a  visit  to  "  Governor  "  Esac,  who 
proved  to  be  the  only  white  person  there. 


333  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

The  Government -house  at  Karsuk  is  of  the  uniform 
style  of  architecture  that  prevails  throughout  the  village 
(and,  indeed,  throughout  Greenland  generally),  and  differs 
only  from  the  others  in  its  superior  size,  increased  com- 
fort, and  greater  ornamentation — that  is  to  say,  the  ves- 
tibule is  not  so  long  as  that  of  the  others,  and  does  not, 
therefore,  accommodate  so  many  snarling  dogs  and  litters 
of  puppies,  the  owner  being  rich  enough  to  afford  a  sepa- 
rate shelter  for  those  ordinary  members  of  a  Greenland 
family.  Then  this  same  vestibule  is  four  instead  of  three 
feet  high,  and  you  run  a  correspondingly  less  risk  of 
knocking  your  brains  out  as  you  go  in.  The  interior — 
roof,  floor  and  wall — is  lined  and  covered  with  planed 
boards,  which  Esac  has  obtained  from  the  Government 
stores  at  Upernavik. 

The  house  has  but  one  room,  it  is  true,  but  then  it  is  six- 
teen by  twenty  feet,  while  the  native  houses  are  only  ten 
by  twelve,  and  their  walls  are  lined  with  seal-skins  instead 
of  boards,  and  the  floor  is  covered  with  flat  stones.  As 
for  the  walls,  they  are  all  built  alike,  six  feet  high  and 
four  feet  thick,  of  stones  and  turf.  There  is  a  roof  of 
rough  timbers  and  boards;  then  the  whole,  roof  and 
walls,  are  covered  with  heavy  sods,  which  grow  green,  and 
convert  the  hut  into  a  sort  of  mound.  At  fifty  yards  you 
could  hardly  distinguish  Esac's  house  from  the  general 
green  of  the  hill-side  but  for  the  Government  stove-pipe 
which  projects  through  the  roof,  and  the  smoke  of  Danish 
coal  that  comes  from  it,  for  it  must  be  understood  that  this 
country  produces  no  fuel  save  dried  moss  and  blubber,  of 
which  the  natives  make,  in  an  open  dish  of  soap-stone, 
their  only  fire. 

Esac  had  made  good  use  of  the  doctor's  prescription,  for 
he  seemed  to  be  now  entirely  free  from  pain — at  least  he 
did  not  once  mention  it ;  but  he  pointed  to  an  empty  bot- 


AVJtOSti   THE  ARCTIC  CIML'LK  235 

tie  with  one  hand,  while  extending  the  other  to  welcome 
us.  Then  he  introduced  us  to  his  wife,  and  invited  us  to 
be  seated,  with  immense  decorum,  and  with  a  high  appre- 
ciation of  the  rights  of  hospitality.  Half  the  floor  was 
raised  a  foot  above  the  other  half,  and  down  we  sat  on 
this,  along  with  the  different  members  of  his  family,  in- 
cluding a  son  recently  married  and  his  blushing  bride — at 
least  it  is  fair  to  suppose  that  she  was  doing  what  brides 
always  do,  as  a  matter  of  course,  only  she  was  too  dark  to 
allow  the  blushes  to  be  visible.  Along  the  back  part  of 
this  raised  place,  or  dais,  there  were  piled  up  great  bags 
of  eider-down,  which  are  spread  out  at  night,  and  there 
the  numerous  family  of  Esac  would  bestow  themselves  to 
sleep,  after  such  fashion  and  in  such  place  as  they  found 
most  suited  to  the  taste  and  convenience.  There  being 
no  partitions,  the  choice  was  limited  only  by  the  walls 
and  certain  claims  of  modesty,  which  drove  the  females 
all  to  one  corner,  and  the  males  to  the  other. 

Esac's  wife  was  a  thorough-bred  Esquimaux,  and  when 
we  entered  she  was  seated  beside  a  lamp,  over  which 
hung  a  steaming  kettle  that  gave  forth  the  pleasing  aro- 
ma of  coffee. 

This  housewife  was  a  woman  worth  knowing.  She 
wore  yellow  boots  of  extraordinary  length,  seal-skin  pan- 
taloons, a  Scotch  plaid  jacket  lined  with  fawn-skin,  and 
hair  twisted  into  a  top-knot  after  the  native  fashion.  Al- 
together she  looked  neat  and  matronly;  of  course  also 
after  the  native  fashion.  Esac's  approbation  left  no  doubt 
on  that  score.  "  Mine  frau !  "  said  he,  pointing  to  the  lady 
of  the  yellow  boots.  "  Mine  frau — all  same  you  speakum 
vife."  He  had  been  on  board  many  a  whale-ship,  and  had, 
with  the  singular  facility  of  the  Danes  everywhere,  picked 
up  a  little  English.  Then  he  continued :  "  Very  good 
vife  she.  Plenty  vurks  ; "  and  with  his  right  forefinger  he 


336  THE  LAX1J   OF  DESOLATION. 

counted  this  item  number  one  off  upon  his  left  forefinger ; 
"  plenty  good  cooks  "  (finger  number  two) ;  "  plenty  good 
coffee  makum  "  (finger  number  three) ;  "  plenty  sew  "  (fin- 
ger number  four) ;  and  then,  after  a  pause,  and  dropping 
his  fingers,  evidently  regarding  them  as  of  no  further  ac- 
count, he  threw  back  his  head,  sniffed  the  air,  and  said, 
triumphantly,  and  as  if  there  was  no  use  talking  further, 
"No  smell." 

But  if  Esac's  frau  did  not  smell,  the  Government-house 
did,  so  that  we  remained  only  long  enough  to  pat  the 
babies,  bestow  some  presents,  and  receive  some  in  return, 
when  we  took  to  the  open  air  for  relief;  not,  however, 
until  we  had  partaken  of  a  really  excellent  cup  of  coffee 
of  this  estimable  lady's  preparing — coffee  being  the  uni- 
versal and,  besides  the  pipe,  almost  the  only  luxury  of 
these  Arctic  wilds. 

It  is  offered  to  you  everywhere,  in  every  hut  and  tent 
even  of  the  lowest  savage.  It  has,  of  course,  only  been  in 
use  since  the  Christians  came  there ;  but  now  it  is  a  na- 
tional beverage,  and  one  of  the  principal  articles  used  in 
trade.  In  the  Upernavik  district  alone  the  annual  con- 
sumption is  about  six  thousand  pounds  among  a  total 
population  of  less  than  seven  hundred  souls — nearly  ten 
pounds  to  each  man,  woman,  and  child.  And  every  man, 
woman,  and  child  has  free  access  to  the  Government 
store-rooms,  when  they  go  provided  with  blubber,  walrus 
or  narwhal  ivory,  eider-down,  or  some  other  merchanta- 
ble commodity;  and  in  return  he  receives  every  needful 
article  of  civilized  comfort  and  convenience,  save  and  ex- 
cept only,  as  I  have  before  observed  in  my  relation  of  Ju- 
lianashaab,  the  villainous  "fire-water."  The  exclusion  of 
spirits  from  the  Greenland  natives  is  but  one  of  many  evi- 
dences of  the  paternal  care  which  the  Danish  Government 
exercises  over  these  children  of  nature.  The  whole  sys- 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  237 

tern  being  devised  with  the  view  of  making  the  natives  use- 
ful subjects,  instead  of  reducing  them  to  dependents,  and, 
while  causing  them  to  be  taught  Christian  doctrines,  in- 
culcating at  the  same  time  the  practice  of  Christian  vir- 
tues in  conformity  therewith,  a  circumstance  not  so  usual 
as  to  be  unworthy  of  mention.  It  is  thus  that,  finding  no 
conflict  between  precept  and  example,  the  Greenlanders 
have  embraced  Christianity,  with  its  churches  and  its 
schools,  and  present  an  exceptional  example  of  the  current 
of  a  savage  nature  being  turned  into  the  stream  of  modern 
civilization. 

We  were  bound  to  the  colony  of  Upernavik,  capital  of 
the  Upernavik  District ;  and  having  accomplished  our 
business  in  the  fiord,  we  steamed  around  the  base  of  the 
"  big  mountain,"  and  in  a  couple  of  hours  were  at  anchor 
again  in  a  most  uncomfortable  situation,  among  a  great 
quantity  of  drift-ice,  directly  off  the  little  town,  which, 
perched  upon  the  naked,  treeless  rocks,  presented  a  most 
woe-begone  appearance.  Yet  hearty  hospitality  and  a 
warm  welcome  were  in  store  for  us,  as  I  knew  they  would 
be ;  and  we  soon  forgot  the  desolate  surroundings,  as  one 
would  forget  the  desert  in  the  wild  flower  that  he  finds 
growing  by  the  way.  My  good  old  friend  of  former 
years,  C.  N.  Rudolph,  M.D.,  Bataillonschir,  and  governor 
of  the  Upernavik  District,  was  there  to  greet  us ;  and  his 
great  ancestor,  the  father  of  all  the  Hapsburgs,  could  not 
have  welcomed  guest  with  more  lordly  courtesy  than  did 
this  true-hearted  gentleman  offer  us  the  freedom  of  his 
house. 

And  his  house  was  snug  and  comfortable.  Two  chil- 
dren and  a  kindly,  gentle  wife  comprised  the  family;  and, 
after  seeing  them,  we  needed  not  to  see  the  fragrant  flow- 
ers growing  in  the  windows,  nor  to  eat  an  excellent  din- 
ner, to  convince  us  that  we"  were  in  a  home  as  happy  as  it 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


THE   GOVERNOR   AND   FAMILY. 


was  refined.  The  wild  winds  might  whistle  as  they  would 
over  the  boundless  wilderness  beyond  the  window-panes 
— they  could  not  disturb  the  peace  and  comfort  that 
reigned  within. 

I  never  shall  grow  weary  with  recalling  the  tender  love 
of  flowers  that  I  witnessed  everywhere  in  Greenland.  I 
never  saw  there  a  Danish  house  without  them.  They 


ACROSS  THE  ARCTIC  CIRCLE.  239 

would  not  bear,  throughout  the  entire  length  of  any  single 
day,  exposure  to  the  open  air ;  but  then,  dear  souvenirs  of 
love  and  love's  sweet  offices,  they  keep  them  safe  behind 
the  glass,  and  nurse  them  as  they  nurse  within  their 
hearts  the  kindly  ties  that  bind  their  lives  and  memories 
to  sunny  skies  and  summer  gardens  far  away. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  H. 

BEYOND  CIVILIZATION. 

UPEKNAVIK  DISTRICT  extends  from  about  latitude  70° 
to  latitude  74°,  and  enjoys  the  pre-eminent  distinction  of 
being  the  most  northern  spot  of  all  the  earth  where  civil- 
ized industry  is  carried  on.  The  settlements  comprised 
within  this  most  northern  of  the  Greenland  Districts  are, 
Upernavik  (which  is  the  capital),  Proven,  South  Proven, 
Karsuk  (the  home  of  Esac),  Aukpadlartok,  Kresarsoak, 
Kryatok,  and  Tessuisak.  Of  these,  the  latter  is  the  most 
northern,  and  is,  moreover,  the  most  northern  spot  of  earth 
where  any  Christian  people  dwell.  It  lies  some  fifty  miles 
to  the  northward  of  Upernavik,  in  latitude  73°  35'.  There, 
after  leaving  Upernavik,  and  twisting  for  many  hours 
about  among  a  perfect  maze  of  islands,  we  made  our  next 
halt.  The  place  differs  in  its  general  features  from  Kar- 
suk, already  described,  only  in  having  for  its  trader,  gov- 
ernor, or  bestyrere,  whichever  you  like  to  call  him,  a  man 
of  more  intelligence  than  Esac,  and  altogether  of  very  dif- 
ferent character.  This  governor's  wife  is  Danish,  and  he 
brought  her  with  him  from  Copenhagen  to  this  last  bound- 
ary of  the  Christian  world,  and  he  lives  in  a  comfortable 
little  house  of  civilized  construction.  His  wife,  when  she 
first  came  here,  was  a  fresh  young  bride ;  and  here  four 
children  have  been  born  to  them.  One  of  these  sleeps  in 
its  cold  grave  among  the  stones. 

The  town  itself  is  otherwise  not  unlike  Karsuk,  and  has 
about  the  same  number  of  native  inhabitants,  an  equal 
number  of  yelping  dogs  (I  should  say  about  a  hundred), 


BEYOND  CIVILIZATION.  243 

and  the  average  proportion  of  the  filth  and  stench  insepa- 
rable from  a  town  of  such  description.  Among  it  all  the 
trader's  little  whitewashed  house  loomed  up  cheerily,  and, 
like  a  light-house  in  a  dirty  fog,  it  was  a  pleasant  thing  to 
look  upon.  It  was  late  at  night  when  we  dropped  our  an- 
chor, but  the  photographers  had  time  to  get  out  their  cam- 
era and  bath ;  and  as  the  clock  struck  twelve  they  made 
a  picture  of  it — the  most  northern  house  upon  the  globe, 
photographed  by  the  light  of  the  midnight  sun!  a  feat  well 
suited  to  the  place  and  the  romantic  circumstances  of  our 
situation.  We  carried  the  picture  off  as  a  pleasant  sou- 
venir. 

But,  unhappily,  the  proprietor  of  this  house  was  not 
there,  nor  his  family.  They  had  all  gone  off  reindeer- 
shooting — the  entire  family  camping  out  in  the  open  air — 
a  circumstance  which  I  regretted  the  more  that  the  man 
had  served  me  before  as  interpreter  and  dog-manager  in 
1860-'61,  and  I  was  naturally  desirous  to  see  him.  We 
sent  off  a  native  courier,  but  the  courier  missed  him,  and 
after  remaining  twelve  hours,  and  the  case  appearing  hope- 
less, the  Panther  was  headed  once  more  northward,  and 
over  the  classic  ground  of  the  whalers  we  were  soon  pass- 
ing Wedge  Island  and  Cone  Island,  and  Horse's  Head,  and 
Cape  Shackleton ;  and  finally  we  fetched  up  at  the  Duck 
Islands,  sixty  miles  beyond  Tessuisak. 

The  Duck  Islands  were  in  former  years  a  sort  of  whale- 
men's rendezvous.  To  this  point  they  fought  their  way 
among  the  great  ice-fields  along  the  Greenland  coast ;  and 
here  they  are  beyond  the  Danish  colonies,  and  beyond  the 
reach  of  human  succor  if  misfortune  happens  them.  Ahead 
of  them  lies  Melville  Bay,  and  the  "middle  ice"  or  "pack," 
which  they  are  bold  to  enter,  and  if  lucky  enough,  in  the 
end,  to  pass,  they  are  pretty  sure  to  find  an  ample  reward 
in  the  cargo  of  whale  blubber  and  whalebone  which  they 


244  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

will  gather  in  the  northern  and  western  waters  of  Baffin's 
Bay.  In  former  times  this  fleet  numbered  something  like 
a  hundred  sail;  but  now  about  a  dozen  steamers  do  the 
work  of  the  noble  old  sailing  ships,  of  which  the  recently 
destroyed  True  Love  was  the  last.  As  the  fleet  "  take  the 
ice  "  here  early  in  June  or  late  in  May,  we  were  of  course 
too  late  for  them. 

When  a  little  more  than  half-way  between  the  first  and 
second  of  the  Duck  Islands  we  ran,  at  nearly  full  speed, 
upon  a  sunken  rock  not  laid  down  on  the  charts — perhaps 
for  the  reason  that  nobody  ever  hit  it  before,  but  more 
probably,  as  it  seemed,  because  of  the  disposition  of  our 
mate  to  allow  no  opportunity  to  be  lost  for  sounding  Baf- 
fin's Bay  with  the  keel  of  the  Panther.  We  struck  it  first 
with  the  stem,  and  fortunately  glanced  off  to  port,  thus 
easing  the  shock,  and,  by  somewhat  deadening  the  head- 
way of  the  steamer,  the  better  enabled  us  to  take  the 
rock  again  and  get  fast  aground. 

The  shock  was,  I  need  hardly  say,  rather  startling.  The 
worst  results  were,  not  without  reason,  anticipated.  The 
timber-heads  were  of  course, as  everybody  supposed,  start- 
ed and  glaring  wide  open ;  of  course  the  ship  had  sprung 
a  leak ;  of  course  we  would  have  to  take  to  our  boats,  and 
make  our  way  as  best  we  could  to  Tessuisak  and  TJperna- 
vik,  and  there  meet  the  Danish  ship, 'and  reach  home  by 
way  of  Copenhagen,  leaving  the  Panther  to  go  to  pieces 
on  the  rocks.  It  was  not  a  pleasant  prospect,  but  there 
was  no  help  for  it.  The  artists  were  in  a  great  stew 
about  the  "negatives."  Our  special  artist  (the  very  live- 
ly young  gentleman,  much  given  to  caricature,  already 
mentioned,  who,  for  short,  bore  the  cheering  name  of 
"Blob")  was  much  alarmed  for  the  safety  of  his  numerous 
sketches.  "  The  Professor"  bemoaned  the  fate  of  his  col- 
lection of  specimens.  But  to  every  body's  great  surprise, 


BEYOND   CIVILIZATION.  ^45 

and  to  the  utter  destruction  of  every  body's  well-laid 
plans  of  misfortune,  a  careful  examination  proved  that  no 
harm  had  been  done  whatever,  except  to  the  cabin  furni- 
ture. The  shock  set  our  cups  and  plates  shying  about 
the  deck  in  a  very  fragmentary  state,  and  sent  our  cabin- 
boy,  who  was,  as  usual,  asleep  in  the  pantry,  head  foremost 
through  the  door,  where  he  tripped  up  the  steward,  who 
was  bringing  in  a  pot  of  boiled  mush,  all  of  which  the  un- 
happy boy  received  on  the  abdominal  region,  and  for  the 
first,  last,  and  only  time  during  the  cruise  got  thoroughly 
waked  up. 

It  was  none  of  our  (that  is  to  say,  the  passengers')  busi- 
ness whether  the  Panther  got  off  the  rocks  or  not.  That 
was  the  captain's  affair ;  and  therefore,  when  we  learned 
that  no  hole  had  been  made  in  her  bottom,  we  were  eager 
to  get  ashore,  and  after  the  birds.  "  The  Professor  "  was 
easy  in  his  mind  about  the  specimens ;  "  Blob  "  was  re- 
lieved about  his  caricatures,  and  the  "  negatives "  were 
safe.  What  was  to  prevent  us  ?  Nothing  but  the  settle- 
ment of  the  question  of  responsibility  as  to  whose  fault  it 
was  that  we  hit  the  rock.  The  mate  said  it  wasn't  his. 
Oh  no !  who  ever  was  at  fault  when  any  mischief  was 
done  ?  But  the  captain  declared  it  was ;  and  the  mate, 
with  equal  zeal,  repeated  that  it  was  not.  But  the  second 
mate  was  against  him,  and  every  body  else  appeared  to 
be ;  so  he  protested  very  loudly  that  it  was  no  part  of  his 
duty  to  keep  the  run  of  all  the  rocks  in  Baffin's  Bay; 
which  was  rather  hard  upon  the  captain,  who  kept  the 
charts,  and,  if  there  were  any  rocks  lying  around  loose, 
should  know  about  it. 

This  home-thrust  incensed  the  captain  greatly;  and, 
without  making  any  secret  of  it,  he  advised  the  mate  to 
go  home  to  his  mother  (which  he  would,  no  doubt,  have 
been  glad  enough  to  do),  and,  with  a  consistency  peculiar 


246  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

to  maritime  people,  told  him,  with  the  same  breath,  that 
he  had  better  go  and  scrape  the  rust  off  the  anchor,  as 
that  was  all  he  was  fit  for.  This  settled  the  matter ;  and 
the  matter  being  settled,  a  calm  followed  on  the  heels  of 
the  storm ;  and,  upon  the  first  lull,  we  got  a  boat  off  the 
davits,  and  got  ourselves  and  our  guns  and  heavy  shot, 


ElUEB- DUCKS. 


for  the  promiscuous  slaughter  of  ducks,  landed  on  the 
beach.  Then  we  all  filed  off  to  left  and  right,  and  march- 
ed inland,  the  ducks  very  obligingly  getting  up  before  us 
as  we  went  along,  and  hurrying  away  with  a  terrible  flap- 
ping of  wings  and  quacking  with  fright — at  least,  such  as 


BEYOND  CIVILIZATION.  347 

we  did  not  bring  down — and,  since  they  rose  superbly, 
any  body  with  half  a  hand  could  have  knocked  over  his 
bird.  The  sport  was  good,  and  by  all  odds  the  best  we 
had  yet  enjoyed. 

The  islands  proved,  indeed,  to  have  been  well  named. 
The  birds  were  the  famous  eider-duck,  close  kindred  of 
our  much  prized  canvas-back,  though  much  larger,  and, 
feeding  on  shrimps,  their  flesh  is  not  so  well  flavored. 

The  whole  aspect  of  the  place  was  forbidding  in  the  ex- 
treme— too  bleak  and  desolate  to  make  one  think  of  look- 
ing there  for  game  did  he  not  know  better  beforehand. 
But  there  were,  towards  the  centre  of  the  island,  some 
small  pools  or  lakes  of  snow-water,  which  furnished  moist- 
ure for  the  growth  of  great  quantities  of  moss ;  and  in 
this  moss,  after  the  waters  had  subsided  and  left  it  dry, 
the  birds  had  built  their  nests,  lining  them  with  the  deli- 
cate down  which  grows  upon  the  breast.  This  the  bird 
plucks  off  with  her  bill  to  the  extent  of  a  good  handful, 
leaving  the  feathers  intact ;  and  when  she  quits  her  nest 
to  feed,  she  covers  her  eggs  with  this  warm  material  to 
keep  them  warm.  In  regions  farther  south  the  Green- 
landers  make  descents  upon  the  islands,  and  carry  off  this 
fine  lining  of  the  nests,  which,  when  cleaned,  becomes  the 
well-known  and  very  valuable  "  eider-down "  of  com- 
merce. "  Live  down  "  is  the  commercial  name  for  it ;  and 
it  is  a  singular  fact  that  the  same  material  plucked  from 
the  bird  even  an  instant  after  death  is  worthless.  The 
wonderful  elasticity  which  gives  such  great  value  to  the 
"  live  down"  is  wholly  wanting  in  the  dead. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  season  the  ducks  go  in 
pairs,  and  the  contrast  between  the  two  is  very  great — 
the  female  bird  being  brown  and  homely,  while  the  male 
is  black,  with  cream-colored  breast  and  neck,  and  has  the 
most  beautiful  tints  of  green  upon  his  head.  If  the  nest 


348  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

is  robbed  of  down,  and  the  female's  own  supply  is  exhaust- 
ed, the  male  will  sometimes  obligingly  pluck  himself  to 
accommodate  her ;  but  after  she  begins  to  "  sit "  he  is  sel- 
dom seen  about  her  nest  or  in  her  company,  and,  indeed, 
is  not  allowed  there  except  when  she  has  been  robbed, 
and  wants  his  help  to  refresh  the  family  nest.  The  males 
then  flock  together  —  like  hen-pecked  husbands  at  the 
clubs — and  are  very  wild.  To  get  within  range  of  them 
at  all  one  must  lie  low  behind  the  rocks,  and  wait  for 
them  to  fly  overhead.  In  this  manner  we  shot  quite  a 
number,  and  found  their  flesh  a  little  fishy,  but  very  fair. 
We  enjoyed  the  afternoon's  sport  immensely,  and  perhaps 
not  the  less  that  the  captain  had  come  ashore  very  soon 
after  we  landed  to  convey  the  pleasing  intelligence  that, 
the  tide  having  risen,  the  Panther  was  afloat  and  all  right. 
And  apart  from  this,  we  liked  to  have  the  captain  on  all 
hunting  expeditions.  He  was  generally  the  best  shot, 
which  detracted  something,  of  course,  since  he  was  pretty 
sure  to  be  the  winner.  But  then  he  was  always  gay  and 
lively;  and  he  carried  a  gun  which  nobody  but  a  tall, 
powerful  man  like  himself  could  possibly  have  used — one 
of  those  Newfoundland  sealing-guns — long  enough,  ordi- 
narily, to  knock  a  bird  over  without  firing.  But  the  cap- 
tain was  too  fond  of  sport  for  work  of  that  sort,  and  he 
invariably  allowed  the  bird  to  get  beyond  the  muzzle  be- 
fore he  pulled  trigger.  Fifteen  dozen  birds  rewarded  us 
well  for  some  fatigue,  undergone  in  a  temperature  warm 
enough  to  enable  us  to  dispense  with  coats,  even  although 
we  were  in  latitude  74°,  and  surrounded  on  every  side  by 
ice. 

The  islands  were  so  full  of  interest,  and  possessed  so 
many  romantic  associations,  that  I  wandered  about  them, 
from  one  to  the  other,  rather  in  pursuit  of  my  own  fancy 
than  of  game.  Everywhere  that  I  went  there  appeared 


BEYOND   CIVILIZATION.  249 

traces  of  the  whalemen — at  one  place  a  flag-staff,  at  an- 
other place  the  fragment  of  a  wreck ;  here  they  had  built 
a  fire,  and  there  they  had  made  a  camp;  and  upon  the 
very  summit  of  the  outer  island,  five  hundred  feet  above 
the  sea,  we  discovered  the  walls  of  an  old  look-out  station, 
behind  which  many  a  hardy  mariner  whose  ship  was  "  be- 
set" among  the  ice  had  come  and  watched,  perhaps  for 
days,  waiting  and  hoping  for  some  favorable  change  of 
wind  and  weather  to  bring  a  change  of  ice  and  change  of 
fortune. 

On  another  part  of  this  same  island  we  came  upon  seven 
graves.  They  were  about  fifty  yards  from  the  beach,  on  a 
rapidly  sloping  hill-side  facing  the  west,  beneath  a  great 
tall  cliff,  which  forms  a  conspicuous  landmark  for  vessels 
approaching  from  that  direction. 

Never  was  place  of  human  sepulture  more  desolate. 
Here  there  were  no  birds ;  there  was  not  even  a  blade  of 
grass,  nor  a  bit  of  moss — not  a  living  thing— nothing  but 
a  waste  of  naked  rocks  and  loose  stones,  that  had  been 
tumbled  by  the  frosts  of  winter  from  the  cliffs  above. 
The  dead  had  been  laid  in  some  convenient  place  among 
the  rocks,  and  the  stones  had  been  heaped  upon  the  cof- 
fins; and  at  the  head  of  each  rude  sepulchre  there  had 
been  placed  a  board  on  which  the  shipmates  of  the  dead 
sailor  had  carved  his  name  and  age,  and  the  place  of  his 
nativity,  his  ship,  and  rank,  and  day  of  death. 

There  was  something  very  touching  in  the  evident  care 
with  which  the  last  sad  oifices  of  the  living  to  the  dead 
had  been  performed.  But  even  there,  in  the  drear  soli- 
tude, other  men  had  followed  after  the  mourners,  and 
graves  which  the  wild  beasts  had  respected,  and  which 
showed  such  signs  of  tender  solicitude,  had  been  most  bar- 
barously desecrated.  The  graves  themselves  remained  as 
they  had  been  originally  prepared,  but  the  head-boards, 

L2 


250  THE  LAXD    OF  DESOLATION. 

on  which  careful  hands  had  carved  the  brief  record  of  a 
career  that  the  grave  closed  over,  were  broken  into  splin- 
ters, and  strewn  upon  the  rocks  around.  A  party  from 
some  whale-ship  (it  could  be  no  other)  had  landed  there, 
and,  using  the  head-boards  of  the  graves  for  targets,  had 
blown  them  all  to  pieces  with  ball  and  shot.  Not  a  single 
one  remained  intact,  and  the  resting-place  which  each  was 
meant  to  tell  of  could  not  possibly  be  identified.  Nor 
could  much  be  made  of  the  splinters  that  I  found.  The 
records  on  two  of  these  ran  thus  : 

"  Of  the  ship  Jane,  of  Hull,  died  April  28,  1832 :" 

"Who  died  on  board  of  the  ship  Alexander,  of  Dundee,  June  21, 1842, 
adged  42  years." 

But  to  neither  of  these  was  any  name  attached;  and 
even  this  much  was  deciphered  with  difficulty,  so  effectual 
had  been  the  aim  of  the  vandals.  Another  splinter  told 

that 

"Wm.  Hardy,  aged  59," 

had  died,  but  I  could  not  make  out  the  name  of  his  ship 
or  the  date  of  his  death.  Even  about  the  "  Wm."  there 
was  uncertainty.  The  only  perfect  one  ran  thus : 

"  To  the  memory  of  Thos.  Roberts,  seaman,  Leith,  who  died  on  board 
the  Alphen,  of  Peterhead,  July  6th,  1825,  aged  37  years." 

It  was  late  in  the  afternoon  when  we  brought  up  at  the 
summit  of  the  island  in  the  whalers'  old  look-out  station, 
where  we  commanded  a  superb  view  of  the  surrounding 
region.  How  grandly  the  mountains  and  glaciers  of 
Greenland  loomed  up  on  our  right !  How  splendid  was 
the  sea  around,  speckled  with  ice,  while  here  and  there 
appeared  a  dark  rocky  island  among  the  general  white- 
ness. How  tempting  Melville  Bay  ahead,  with  its  inter- 
minable "pack." 


1 CJH-NA  VI G  A  TION. 


CHAPTER  III. 

ICE-NAVIGATION. 

WHILE  the  chain  is  clicking  in  the  hawse-hole,  let  us 
take  a  quiet  view  of  the  situation.  There  is  no  need,  how- 
ever, to  describe  with  much  minuteness  the  "  Melville 
Bay  pack  "  which  lay  before  us.  The  ice  freshly  broken 
up  in  any  large  river  is  a  sufficient  illustration,  provided 
the  imagination  will  stretch  the  river  to  three  hundred 
miles  in  width,  and  magnify  the  drifting  fields  of  ice  in 
proportion.  In  the  early  part  of  the  season  this  ice  is 
very  hard,  and  many  feet  in  thickness ;  but  by  August 
(which  was  the  time  of  our  being  there)  it  has  become  por- 
ous, its  thickness  has  been  greatly  reduced,  much  of  it  is 
on  the  eve  of  disappearing  altogether,  and  still  more  of 
it  has  quite  melted  away.  Almost  all  the  fields,  or  the 
"  floes,"  as  they  are  called  by  the  whalers,  have  been  eaten 
through  in  places ;  and  over  all  there  are  pools  of  water 
formed  of  melted  snow,  which  give  them  a  mottled  ap- 
pearance. 

In  the  month  of  August  this  "pack  "is  mostly  confined 
to  the  Melville  Bay  region;  hence  the  name  of  "Melville 
Bay  pack,"  which  I  have  used  before.  At  that  season  the 
navigation  is  not  particularly  difficult  or  dangerous.  By 
keeping  well  away  from  the  land  the  passage  can  then 
always  be  made  with  safety.  It  was  by  following  the  op- 
posite course  that  Captain  Sir  Francis  M'Clintock  found 
himself  delayed  in  1857,  with  his  ship  firmly  frozen  fast, 
and  with  no  alternative  but  to  pass  the  winter  drifting 
with  the  "pack"  in  a  most  uncomfortable  and  hazardous 


252  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

situation.  Had  he  followed  the  example  and  advice  of 
Dr.  Kane,  he  might  have  won  his  knightly  spurs  a  year 
sooner,  and  with  less  discomfort. 

Earlier  in  the  summer  the  pack  extends  far  down  Baf- 
fin's Bay ;  and  south  of  the  Arctic  Circle  it  stretches  away 
to  the  coasts  of  Labrador  and  Newfoundland.  And  it  is 
here  that  commerce  profits  by  it,  for  the  seals  flock  to  it 
the  moment  it  has  ceased  to  be  the  solid  ice  of  the  winter, 
and  become  the  "  pack"  ice  of  the  spring.  Of  these  seals 
there  are  many  varieties.  Some  are  permanent  denizens 
of  the  North ;  others  are  migratory.  These  last  only  are 
found  so  low  as  Newfoundland  and  Labrador.  Seeking 
the  ice  in  the  month  of  March,  they  crawl  upon  it,  and 
there  bring  forth  their  young.  These  seals  come  up  from 
the  South — from  the  St.  Lawrence  region  and  along  the 
shores  of  New  Brunswick  and  Maine,  where  they  have 
wintered — and  with  the  ice  they  drift  back  south  again 
until  it  melts  away.  Other  varieties  (the  true  Arctic 
seals)  adhere  to  the  solid  ice,  as  far  as  possible,  and,  if 
drifted  off  south  ward  with  the  pack,  return  north  again  to 
winter,  and  then,  in  order  to  breathe  (for  the  seals  are  not 
fish,  and  can  not  breathe  under  water),  they  are  compelled 
to  keep  holes  open  in  the  ice  with  their  sharp  claws. 
These  true  Arctic  seals  are  not  so  numerous  as  the  south- 
ern varieties,  of  which  latter  millions  may  sometimes  be 
seen  at  one  time  upon  the  drifting  ice.  It  is  the  young 
of  these  (when  from  two  to  three  weeks  old)  that  are 
slaughtered  in  such  great  numbers  by  the  seal-fishers. 
The  vessels,  usually  small  schooners,  but  sometimes  steam- 
ers like  our  Panther  (which  was  built  for  that  service),  en- 
ter the  pack,  and  the  crew,  scattering  to  right  and  left 
over  the  ice,  gather  up  the  seals  as  they  go  along,  the  ves- 
sel merely  keeping  pace  with  them.  Upon  the  first  attack 
the  old  ones  abandon  their  young  to  their  fate,  and  the 


THE    POLAR    BEAR» 


ICE -NAVIGATION.  255 

innocent,  whining  "baby  seals,"  too  young  to  appreciate 
danger,  are  captured  without  difficulty — a  tap  on  the  nose 
with  the  toe  of  a  boot  or  with  a  boat's  "  gaff"  robbing 
them  quickly  of  what  little  life  they  have. 

From  the  seals  let  us  pass  to  their  enemies,  the  bears — 
I  mean,  of  course,  the  true  Arctic  bears,  known  in  different 
localities  by  different  names — "ice-bears"  they  are  usu- 
ally called  in  the  far  north,  because  they  are  not  found 
elsewhere  than  on  the  ice.  But  farther  south  this  is  not 
always  true  of  them,  since  both  from  choice  and  necessity 
they  often  take  the  water,  and  are  generally  known  on 
"the  Labrador"  as  "water-bears."  They  are  often  car- 
ried off  from  the  pack  upon  a  single  ice-field,  which,  going 
to  pieces  under  them,  forces  them  to  swim,  perhaps,  many 
miles  before  reaching  another.  I  have  seen  one  swimming 
in  a  heavy  sea,  where  there  was  not  a  piece  of  ice  in  sight. 
They  seldom  take  to  the  land,  and  never  voluntarily. 
Their  food  has  either  failed  them  on  the  ice,  or  they  are 
pursued  by  enemies,  or  the  ice  has  all  melted  away  and  left 
them  no  alternative.  The  naturalist's  name,  Ursus  mari- 
timus — "  the  bear  of  the  sea  " — expresses  their  character 
perfectly.  In  color  they  are  yellowish-white — quite  dark, 
indeed,  when  contrasted  with  the  snow.  "White  bear" 
is  therefore  a  misnomer,  as  is  also  "Polar  bear;"  but  this 
latter  is  the  name  most  commonly  in  use,  and  is  the  one, 
therefore,  which  I  shall  employ  whenever  referring  to 
them. 

The  food  of  the  seal  consists  of  those  low  forms  of  ma- 
rine life  known  to  us  as  shrimps,  and  to  naturalists  as  m- 
vertebrata,  and  sometimes  certain  varieties  of  mollusca. 
The  former  exist  in  vast  numbers  in  the  icy  waters  of  the 
North ;  .and  it  is  this  abundant  supply  of  food  which  at- 
tracts to  that  quarter  of  the  world  not  seals  alone,  but 
those  enormous  flights  of  birds  of  which  we  read,  and 


250 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


some  idea  of  which  was  given  in  former  chapters  of  this 
book.  On  the  other  hand,  the  food  of  the  bear  is  the  seal. 
Therefore,  wherever  ice  is  seen  senls  may  be  expected ; 
and  where  seals  are  seen,  you  may  look  out  for  bears. 

We  had  seen  seals  and  we  had  seen  the  "pack,"  and 
thus  bears  were  suggested ;  and  the  suggestion  was  pe- 
culiarly welcome  to  the  people  of  the  Panther.  The  an- 
chor was  aweigh  in  almost  no  time  at  all,  and,  steam  be- 
ing up,  the  Panther  was  pointed  northward,  in  the  calm 


evening.  The  sun  was  in  the  west,  a  good  way  above  the 
horizon,  and  a  pleasant  glow  was  over  sea,  and  land,  and 
glacier. 

We  steer  for  Wilcox  Point,  fifteen  miles  in  a  north-east- 
erly direction  from  the  Duck  Islands,  and  it  is  a  very  lofty, 
noble  headland.  We  spread  out  the  map  on  deck  to  see 
what  comes  next,  and  where  we  are  to  go.  Eastward 
from  Wilcox  Point  we  observe  that  the  coast  trends  some 
miles,  and  then  comes  a  mountain  called  "The  Devil's 
Thumb ;"  and  as  we  subsequently  see  it,  it  has  very  much 
the  appearance  of  a  thumb  projecting  vertically  above  the 


ICE-NA  VIGAT10N.  257 

hand  when  it  is  placed  edgewise  on  the  table,  with  the  lit- 
tle finger  down.  We  afterwards  discover  the  hand  to  be 
an  island,  and  the  thumb  the  centre  of  it,  but  we  did  not 
know  it  then.  Why  the  Devil's  Thumb,  rather  than  the 
thumb  of  some  more  respectable  character,  might  seem 
puzzling ;  but  I  fancy  that  that  dark  spirit  of  evil  was 
complimented  with  this  monument  on  account  of  his  sup- 
posed influence  over  the  neighboring  sea.  The  sea  is 
there,  indeed,  very  perilous,  and  no  part  of  Baffin's  Bay  is 
so  much  dreaded  as  that  vicinity.  The  icebergs  are  so 
numerous  that  the  locality  is  often  called  "  Bergy  Hole ;" 
and  the  currents  are  so  swift  that  a  sailing  vessel,  once  be- 
calmed off  "The  Thumb,"  is  very  likely  to  be  sucked  in 
and  whirled  about,  as  if  there  were  some  secret  and  super- 
natural influence  at  work  upon  the  waters ;  and  if  the  ship 
escapes  without  getting  battered  against  an  iceberg  or 
so,  and  being  much  damaged  in  consequence,  she  is  very 
lucky.  Dr.  Kane's  brig,  the  Advance,  got  whirled  into  this 
dangerous  situation,  and  I  shall  not  soon  forget  the  strug- 
gle of  hours  at  the  oars,  by  which  means  the  brig  was 
saved,  though  not  until  every  body  was  thoroughly  worn 
out,  and  ready  to  drop  down  with  fatigue. 

In  a  north-westerly  direction  from  the  Devil's  Thumb, 
and  distant  from  it  about  two  hundred  miles,  lies  Cape 
York,  and  between  these  two  points  the  coast  makes  a 
deep  curve,  and  the  space  thus  embraced  is  Melville  Bay 
— though  the  name  has  really  a  wider  significance — the 
term  Melville  Bay  being  usually  meant  to  signify  that 
part  of  Baffin's  Bay  west  of  it,  where  the  "  middle  ice  "  is 
always  lying.  The  entire  sweep  of  Melville  Bay  is  one 
vast  line  of  glaciers,  wholly  unapproachable,  and  from 
which  are  cast  off  an  incredible  number  of  icebergs,  that 
are  scattered  over  Baffin's  Bay  in  all  directions,  and  by 
accumulating  in  greater  numbers  year  by  year,  gather  the 


258  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

ice-field  about  them  more  and  more,  and  thus  render  navi« 
gation  each  year  more  difficult  and  perilous.  Since  ships 
first  penetrated  Melville  Bay  a  very  perceptible  change 
has  taken  place. 

Most  of  which  information  we  gather  from  the  map ; 
and  while  gathering  it  the  Panther  is  coming,  bows  on,  to 
the  very  first  field-ice  we  have  seen.  There  it  is  before  us 
— a  great,  long,  level  plain  of  white  and  blue,  stretching 
beyond  the  line  of  vision.  It  does  not  look  so  very  formi- 
dable, after  all,  and  is  rather  disappointing,  until  the  ship 
takes  a  projecting  tongue,  and,  by  the  shock  that  it  gives 
us,  shows  there  is  more  body  to  the  ice  than  first  appear- 
ed. In  fact,  from  seven-eighths  to  nine-tenths  of  it  lies 
below  the  surface  of  the  water ;  and  not  until  the  Panther 
had  split  a  fragment  off  and  turned  it  up  on  its  edge,  as 
the  bow  slid  over  it,  did  we  appreciate  its  really  solid 
quality. 

But  this  was  a  brush  not  worth  mentioning;  and  on 
went  the  Panther  beyond  and  across  clear  water  until  we 
approached  another  great  field,  which  had  at  first  appear- 
ed to  be  a  part  of  the  one  wrhich  we  had  passed ;  but  the 
event  proved  that  there  was  a  wide  streak  of  open  water 
stretching  to  the  northward,  which  a  whaleman  would 
call  a  "  lead  ;"  and,  seeing  that  our  farther  progress  in  the 
direction  we  had  chosen  was  cut  off,  we  bore  away  from 
Wilcox  Point,  and  steamed  north  at  great  speed  between 
the  "floes." 

Very  soon  there  was  no  water  to  be  seen  except  the 
lead  we  were  in  —  everywhere  limitless  ice  —  unless  we 
went  aloft,  when  other  leads  were  visible,  meandering 
among  the  floes  in  all  directions.  The  lead  we  had  enter- 
ed was  at  first  at  least  a  mile  wide ;  but  as  we  proceeded 
it  gradually  narrowed,  then  became  crooked ;  loose  floes  of 
small  size  were  lying  here  and  there  upon  it.  The  mate, 


ICE-NA  VIG  A  TION.  269 

who  was  aloft,  kept  the  man  at  the  wheel  busy  enough 
with  his  "  starboards  "  and  "  ports  "  and  "  steadys,"  until 
it  was  reported  that  our  lead  was  a  blind  one,  and  we 
were  coming  to  the  end  of  it.  An  immense  floe  lay  be- 
tween the  two  great  floes  to  right  and  left  of  us,  jammed 
tight,  and  squeezed  and  broken  up  upon  its  sides.  This 
was  the  report  from  aloft,  and  the  mate  cried,  "  Starboard  ! 
— hard  a-starboard !" 

"  What's  that  for  ?"  shouted  the  captain,  with  stentorian 
voice.  "  What  do  you  want  to  starboard  for  ?" 

"  Jammed  tight  everywhere,  and  we  must  go  back,"  said 
the  mate. 

"  Is  there  no  opening  anywhere  ?" 

"  None ;  but  the  ice  looks  weak  on  the  port  hand." 

"  Keep  her  for  it,  and  put  her  in,"  roared  the  captain. 

"Ay,  ay,  sir*!  Starboard  a  little ;  steady — steady  as  she 
goes." 

And  down  we  bore  upon  the  ice,  the  rakish  bow  and 
stem  of  the  Panther  well  up  out  of  the  water,  and  looking 
defiant,  as  if  it  were  a  matter  of  no  kind  of  consequence  to 
her  what  amount  of  ice  lay  before  her.  It  seemed  as  if 
she  could  crush  it  down,  and  trample  on  it,  and  ride  over 
it  rough-shod,  and  never  wink  until  the  aifair  was  finished. 
Perhaps  the  captain's  threat — seemingly  made  in  earnest 
— to  "  put  her  through,  or  knock  her  bloody  eyes  out," 
may  have  had  some  effect  upon  her,  and  have  inspired  her 
with  additional  resolution. 

We  were  soon  so  near  the  ice  that  the  opening  could  be 
seen  from  the  bridge,  and  the  mate  was  called  below. 
"  Mind  your  helm,  Mick,"  said  the  captain  to  the  man  at 
the  wheel ;  "  mind  your  helm  there  !" 

And  still  on  we  went,  still  rushing  towards  the  ice  at 
full  speed,  the  screw  grinding  fiercely,  and  making  the 
ship  tremble  in  every  timber.  It  was  soon  too  late  to 


260  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

check  her  headway,  even  if  the  captain  should  have  de- 
sired it;  to  wheel  round  now  was  quite  impossible.  We 
braced  ourselves  for  the  shock  that  was  coming — every 
man  catching  hold  of  something  to  steady  himself  with. 
The  captain  watched  the  point  he  wished  to  make  ahead. 
"Port — port  a  little — steady,  steady,  as  she  goes." 

Cr-r-r-r-ash — the  solid  iron  cut-water  of  the  Panther  has 
taken  the  ice.  She  cuts  into  it,  slides  upon  it,  and  crushes 
it  down ;  the  ship  rides  up  again,  and  sinks,  and  buries 
herself  one  full  length  in  the  body  of  the  floe ;  but  still 
she  slides  up  once  more  and  crushes  the  ice  farther  on,  but 
going  slower  now ;  and  then  she  stops  and  settles  down 
to  her  proper  level,  and  the  groaning  of  the  ice  seems  to 
be  a  cry  of  relief  and  satisfaction  from  the  noble  ship, 
which  only  wants  a  little  breathing-time  before  she  begins 
again. 

She  isn't  hurt — not  in  the  least.  Pier  masts  are  all 
standing  right,  her  bows  are  sound  as  ever,  her  solid,  iron- 
bound  sides  have  not  a  scratch.  Pretty  well  for  a  first 
beginning ;  and  no  one  now  doubts  the  Panther's  ability 
for  any  thing. 

"Back  astern,"  shouts  the  captain;  and  we  haul  out 
into  clear  water  a  hundred  fathoms  or  so,  and  butt  away 
into  the  opening  we  have  made  before.  We  ride  over  the 
broken  ice  ;  the  cut-water  strikes  again ;  again  we  feel  the 
ship  going  up  forward ;  again  she  sinks  and  rises,  and  then 
she"  settles  down  again  at  rest.  Then  we  go  below,  in 
great  glee,  to  supper,  and  the  captain  tells  the  watch-offi- 
cer to  "keep  her  at  it;"  and  the  screw,  thumping  against 
the  ice  that  has  come  about  the  stern,  is  kept  revolving, 
and  the  wedge-shaped  Panther  is  pushing  in  between  the 
floes,  forcing  them  asunder. 

When  we  come  on  deck  again  the  crack  is  opening. 
The  jar  and  steady  pressure  have  had  their  effect ;  the 


ICE -NAVIGATION. 


261 


floes  have  been  set  in  motion,  the  crack  widens,  and  we 
grind  through  into  clear,  open  water. 

This  bold  dash  into  the  very  teeth  of  the  enemy  saved 
us  a  wide  detour,  and  brought  us  by  a  short  cut  into  an 
extensive  area  of  open  water,  which  gave  us  a  free  passage 
northward  as  far  as  the  eye  could  see.  But  still  we  had 


THE    !:KVIMJ    THUMB. 


heavy  floes  on  the  starboard  hand,  which  prevented  us 
from  hauling  in,  as  we  desired,  close  under  Wilcox  Point. 
We  had,  however,  a  fine  view  of  the  noble  headland  at  a 
distance  of  five  miles. 

Running  now  along  the  edge  of  an  old  floe  that  lay  to 


262  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

our  right,  all  eyes  were  strained,  and  all  glasses  were  do- 
ing service  in  search  of  bears.  Men  were  in  the  rigging 
and  up  aloft.  We  soon  opened  Melville  Bay,  the  tall  spire 
of  the  Devil's  Thumb  coming  in  view  through  a  blaze  of 
sunshine  exactly  at  midnight. 

It  was  a  midnight  long  to  be  remembered.  The  bright 
sun  stood  in  the  heavens  before  us  but  a  little  way  above 
the  horizon,  glittering  upon  the  icebergs  and  flinging 
gems  broadcast  upon  the  floes.  The  great  glaciers  that 
climbed  up  from  the  sea  at  the  bend  of  the  bay,  until  they 
were  lost  in  a  line  of  purple  against  a  belt  of  golden  light, 
reflected  the  light  from  their  glassy  terraces ;  the  cavern- 
ous old  cape  which  towered  above  our  heads  was  warmed 
and  reddened  by  the  glow ;  upon  the  summit  of  the  Dev- 
il's Thumb  there  lingered  a  brilliant  ray ;  and,  as  the  lofty 
column  rose  from  out  a  vast  cluster  of  icebergs,  it  seemed 
as  if  it  were  a  church  spire  mounting  to  heaven  above 
gome  nameless  city. 


HUNTING  BY  8TEAM. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

HUNTING   BY   STEAM. 

AT  length  there  came  the  cry  of  "  Bears !  bears !" 
which  had  been  so  long  eagerly  desired.  With  the  first 
alarm  the  people  swarmed  up  from  below,  and  the  deck 
was  alive  in  an  instant,  every  body  shouting  "  Where  ?" 
And  "  Where  ?  where  ?"  rang  through  the  ship  loud 
enough,  as  one  would  think,  to  have  frightened  all  the 
bears  of  Melville  Bay  into  fits. 

But  there  were  the  bears,  sure  enough ;  and  they  ap- 
peared to  be  the  very  ones  we  were  looking  for.  Clearly 
they  had  seen  the  Panther  long  before  we  had  discovered 
them;  but  they  did  not  appear  to  be  at  all  frightened, 
but  stood  their  ground  boldly,  looking  at  us  evidently 
with  more  curiosity  than  alarm.  There  were  three  of 
them,  an  old  mother  and  two  cubs,  standing  about  three 
or  four  hundred  yards  distant  from  us,  and  quite  still. 
The  mother  was  in  the  middle,  with  a  cub  on  either  side, 
in  a  very  cool  and  composed  manner.  They  appeared  to 
be  an  affectionate  sort  of  family,  and  were  a  very  odd 
sight  as  they  stood  upon  the  old  ice-field,  the  only  living 
things  on  that  desolate  waste.  It  seemed,  indeed,  a  pity 
to  disturb  these  denizens  of  the  Polar  wilderness. 

The  steamer  was  stopped  as  quickly  as  possible,  and  we 
lay  there  watching  them,  and  they  us,  both  parties  en- 
deavoring to  make  up  their  minds  what  the  other  was  go- 
ing to  do.  The  bears  probably  did  not  see  us — only  the 
steamer — since  we  kept  our  heads  as  much  as  possible  be- 
low the  bulwarks;  and  whatever  wind  there  was  being 


264  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

from  the  north,  they  had  not  discovered  an  enemy  with 
their  noses.  The  steamer  was  but  a  black  curiosity,  and 
we  were  well  pleased  when  they  manifested  a  disposition 
for  a  nearer  inspection  and  a  closer  acquaintance.  The 
old  mother  led  off,  and  the  two  young  ones  came  shuffling 
along  beside  her,  very  slowly  and  cautiously,  edging  away, 
however,  towards  the  vessel's  stern,  manifestly  for  the  pur- 
pose of  coming  as  far  as  possible  around  to  the  leeward 
of  us.  And  here  the  ice  favored  the  old  bear's  design,  for 
a  long  tongue  projected  far  out  from  the  general  line  of 
the  floe.  If  they  should  reach  the  end  of  it  they  would 
be  able  to  discover  us,  but  then  they  would  be  at  the 
same  time  in  a  trap  of  their  own  making.  In  this  design 
we  encouraged  them  by  lying  low  behind  the  bulwarks. 
It  did  not  seem  to  be  in  accordance  with  the  rules  of  the 
hunt  to  allow  your  game  to  crawl  around  where  he  could 
wind  you,  and  this  it  was,  of  course,  within  our  power  to 
prevent ;  but  since  the  captain  had  the  management  of  his 
own  vessel,  and  knew  what  he  could  do  with  her,  he  be- 
came the  master  hunter  by  virtue  of  his  office.  "  We'll 
get  the  whole  lot  of  them  now,"  said  he,  "  if  they  only 
crawl  along  out  on  that  point  a  little  farther."  And  he 
told  the  engineer  to  go  ahead  at  half-speed,  and  told  Mick 
to  shove  his  helm  hard  a-port.  The  action  wheeled  the 
Panther  around  upon  her  heel,  and  she  now  stood  upon 
the  dead  waters  facing  the  bears,  who  still,  slowly  and 
cautiously,  were  going  out  on  the  tongue  of  the  old  floe. 

"  Why,  captain,  what  are  you  going  to  do  now  ?  The 
moment  the  bears  scent  us  they  will  take  off!"  exclaimed 
an  anxious  hunter. 

"  But  before  they  do,"  replied  the  captain,  "  I  can  cut 
in  behind  and  head  them." 

"  But  the  ice,  the  ice,  man  You  will  surely  not  drive 
her  into  a  floe  like  that  ?" 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM.  265 

"That  I  will,"  said  the  captain,  promptly;  "drive  her 
into  an  iceberg,  if  necessary." 

So  now  it  was  the  skill  and  strength  of  the  Panther 
against  the  skill  and  fleetness  of  the  bears. 

Bears  are  not  graceful  animals  in  their  movements. 
Their  enormous  legs  are  carried  along  as  if  they  had  no 
joints  in  them,  and  their  immense  feet  are  lifted  in  a  man- 
ner to  suggest  their  being  mounted  on  snow-shoes.  The 
long,  tapering  neck  is  the  only  graceful  thing  about  them. 

I  was  particularly  struck  with  the  old  mother's  exces- 
sive caution.  She  would  not  come  near,  and  yet  she  would 
not  go  away.  Had  she  taken  to  her  heels  when  she  first 
discovered  us  she  could,  of  course,  have  defied  pursuit,  for 
the  ice-field  was  so  extensive  that  we  could  never  have 
overtaken  her.  But  she  seemed  to  be  fascinated  with  the 
steamer,  and  her  curiosity  got  the  better  of  her  discretion. 
It  is  not  the  first  time  that  this  same  quality,  inherent  in 
all  living  creatures,  has  involved  its  possessor  in  trouble. 

She  moved  along  with  great  deliberation.  She  appear- 
ed to  be  a  well-fed  bear,  and  probably  had  breakfasted  re- 
cently and  felt  lazy ;  for  she  did  not  once  attempt  to  run, 
nor  did  she  wade  through  the  pools  of  water  which  were 
on  the  ice,  but  deliberately  walked  around  them,  as  if  in- 
disposed even  to  wet  her  feet.  Sometimes  she  would  turn 
her  back  towards  us,  sometimes  her  front ;  often  she 
would  stop,  stretch  out  her  long  neck  and  sniff  the  air  all 
round,  turning  her  head  to  right  and  left,  throwing  her 
nose  as  high  up  as  she  could  get  it,  and  then  dropping 
it  on  the  ice  as  if  she  might  discover  something  there. 
Meanwhile,  the  little  ones  were  cutting  all  sorts  of  antics 
about  her.  Seeing  that  she  was  not  alarmed,  they  were 
in  great  glee,  evidently  regarding  the  Panther  as  a  very 
wonderful  show,  got  up  by  their  mother  for  their  special 
benefit.  They  chased  each  other  like  a  pair  of  kittens; 

M 


266  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

raced  round  and  round  the  old  bear,  rolled  each  other 
over  on  the  ice,  using  their  paws  and  teeth  upon  each  oth- 
er after  the  usual  innocent  and  playful  fashion  natural  to 
dumb  animals  in  their  youthful  state.  They  splashed  the 
water  right  and  left  as  they  ran  through  the  pools ;  and 
altogether  they  appeared  to  be  a  pair  of  very  lively,  and 
highly  delighted  young  bears,  who  regarded  the  present 
occasion  as  rather  a  jolly  sort  of  entertainment. 

It  took  this  family  party  somewhere  near  half  an  hour 
to  get  around  to  where  the  old  one  wanted  to  be,  to  satis- 
fy herself  as  to  whether  the  Panther  was  a  friend  or  a  foe. 
Once  she  seemed  irresolute,  and  turned  about  as  if  she 
would  retrace  her  steps  and  make  off;  but  then  she  turn- 
ed back  again,  and  for  some  minutes  after  seemed  to  be 
dragged  by  two  antagonistic  impulses,  first  one  way  and 
then  the  other,  with  a  general  gain  of  force,  however,  on 
the  string  which  drew  her  out  to  the  point  of  ice. 

By-and-by  she  got  where  she  seemed  to  be  satisfied,  for 
she  suddenly  stopped  short,  threw  up  her  head,  gave  a  tre- 
mendous snort,  wheeling  around  at  the  same  time  in  a 
state  of  alarm,  and  looking  about  as  if  for  some  means  of 
escape.  After  a  moment's  reflection  she  took  the  back 
track.  The  alarm  spread  to  the  little  ones,  and  the  lively 
creatures  ran  around  their  mother  as  if  they  would  inquire 
what  the  matter  was,  and  if  the  show  was  over,  and  they 
were  to  have  no  more  of  it,  while  she  seemed  to  be  en- 
couraging them  by  assurances  that  it  was  no  great  affair, 
but  that  it  was  necessary  for  them  to  use  their  legs  as 
nimbly  as  possible,  for  they  must  get  out  of  that.  So 
their  gambols  were  ended,  and  the  little  things  whined 
piteously,  and  did  their  best.  They  appeared  to  be  as  un- 
happy as  children  caught  in  a  thunder-shower  on  their 
way  from  a  country  fair.  It  was  now  not  less  amusing  to 
watch  them  than  before.  In  the  confused  state  of  their 


HUNTING  JBY  STEAM.  269 

minds  they  grew  utterly  careless  of  what  they  were  about, 
and  they  often  sprang  upon  rotten  places  in  the  ice,  and 
broke  through,  and  by  the  time  they  had  crawled  out 
again  the  mother  was  some  distance  ahead,  and  was 
obliged  to  wait,  and  often  to  run  back,  if  not  actually  to 
render  assistance  to  her  cubs,  at  least  to  encourage  them. 
As  for  herself,  she  could  readily  have  escaped ;  and  she 
appeared  to  be  quite  conscious  of  the  fact ;  but  she  would 
not  leave  her  young:  her  devotion  to  them  was  indeed 
touching,  and  worthy  of  all  admiration. 

Meanwhile  the  Panther  had  not  been  idle.  The  mo- 
ment the  old  bear  got  the  wind  of  us,  and  began  to  show 
symptoms  of  alarm,  the  captain  rang  his  bell,  "Ahead,  full 
speed."  The  screw  began  to  revolve,  and  at  the  top  of 
her  speed  the  vessel  bore  down  upon  the  ice,  across  the 
line  of  the  bears'  retreat. 

This  was  the  captain's  plan  from  the  beginning,  and  it 
now  became  a  mere  question  of  time  ;  though  on  the  Pan- 
ther's part  there  was  in  the  minds  of  most  of  us  a  question 
of  strength  and  power. 

We  came  upon  the  ice  as  before  with  a  grand  crash, 
striking  what  appeared  to  be  the  weakest  spot.  The 
shock  was  worse  than  any  thing  we  had  yet  felt,  the  ice 
being  firmer  than  before;  but  the  solid  iron  cut-water 
opened  her  way  into  it  as  formerly,  and  she  rode  up  on  it 
and  crushed  it  down,  and  rode  up  again  and  settled  once 
more ;  and  in  the  conflict  every  body  was  very  uneasy  on 
his  legs.  The  jar  made  lively  work  in  the  pantry,  where 
the  cabin-boy  had  retired  when  he  had  shouted  "  bergs  " 
instead  of  bears,  and,  quite  exhausted  by  the  effort,  had 
fallen  fast  asleep  there,  and  was  aroused  by  the  soup-tu- 
reen coming  down  and  landing,  bottom  up,  on  the  crown 
of  his  head,  which  nearly  cracked  his  skull,  but  saved  the 
crockery,  and  in  a  measure  woke  up  the  young  man. 


370  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

"Blob,"  who  was  standing  beside  the  coamings  of  the 
main  hatch,  making  a  sketch  of  the  bears,  turned  a  somer- 
set into  the  coal-hole,  where  his  picture  was  turned  into 
a  black  bear  instead  of  a  white  one.  Otherwise  no  dam- 
age was  done ;  but  the  ruse  was  altogether  successful,  as 
the  captain  had  anticipated;  for  the  force  of  the  shock 
started  the  ice,  and  a  crack  opened  right  through  in  front 
of  us  to  the  water  on  the  other  side.  The  point  to  which 
the  bears  had  gone  was  thus  broken  from  the  main  body 
of  the  floe,  and  the  game  was  now  on  a  raft,  and  at  our 
mercy. 

The  crack,  opening  very  rapidly  before  the  steady  pres- 
sure of  the  vessel,  gave  us  a  free  passage  through,  and  see- 
ing themselves  thus  headed  off,  and  the  steamer  bearing 
down  across  their  line  of  retreat,  they  took  the  back  track, 
and  now,  all  thoroughly  frightened,  ran  across  to  the  op- 
posite side,  behind  us,  thus  compelling  us  to  wheel  about 
and  return  through  the  crack.  At  this  moment  the  pho- 
tographers came  rushing  on  deck  demanding  the  right  of 
a  "  first  shot."  Quick  as  a  flash  the  camera  was  down  and 
focused,  a  slide  with  a  little  hole  in  it  was  dropped  before 
the  lens,  and  the  family  group  of  polar  bears  was  taken  at 
a  distance  of  about  two  hundred  yards.  To  accomplish 
this  feat  required  the  very  first  degree  of  enterprise  and 
skill.  The  camera  was  stationed  upon  the  top-gallant  fore- 
castle, and  the  impression  was  obtained  while  both  ship 
and  bears  were  in  motion.  The  brightness  of  the  light, 
of  course,  greatly  favored  the  success  of  this  altogether 
novel  experiment  in  the  photographic  art.  The  artists 
(Mr.  John  Dunmore,  of  Boston,  and  Mr.  George  Critcher- 
sen,  of  Worcester)  deserve  the  highest  commendation  for 
their  successful  accomplishment  of  so  difficult  a  feat.  The 
bears  now  took  the  water  with  the  manifest  intention  of 
swimming  to  the  solid  floe  ;  but  here  we  again  anticipated 


HUNTING  BY  STUAM.  271 

them,  and  they  wheeled  about  again,  and  swain  back  to- 
wards the  ice  which  they  had  left  but  a  few  moments  be- 
fore. Putting  the  helm  a-starboard,  we  now  came  direct- 
ly in  upon  their  wake,  and  when  within  fifty  yards  of  them 
slackened  speed. 

At  this  moment  they  presented  a  magnificent  sight, 
their  beautiful  long  hair  waving  gracefully  in  the  clear 
blue  water,  and  their  round,  buoyant  bodies  floating  along 
swiftly  towards  the  ice  and  hoped-for  safety.  The  tender 
regard  of  the  mother  for  her  offspring  was  here  as  strik- 
ingly apparent  as  when  on  the  ice.  She  would  not  aban- 
don them  ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  the  nearer  we  approached 
the  more  she  stuck  by  and  encouraged  them,  still,  as  be- 
fore, with  one  on  either  side.  Once  she  invited  them  to 
dive,  and,  imitating  her  example,  the  three  went  down  to- 
gether and  paddled  themselves  along  for  some  distance 
about  twenty  feet  below  the  surface,  where  we  could 
easily  see  them  striking  out  for  dear  life.  When  they 
came  up  we  gave  them  a  volley  from  our  rifles,  and  the 
old  mother  and  one  of  the  cubs  lay  lifeless  upon  the  blood- 
stained water. 

The  other  cub,  by  some  mischance,  escaped  with  only  a 
slight  scratch,  and  reached  the  floe,  where,  as  he  rose,  an- 
other ball  entered  his  side,  and  sent  him  off  with  a  mortal 
wound,  whining  piteously.  The  captain  now  jammed  his 
steamer  into  the  ice,  and,  clambering  down  over  the  bob- 
stays,  gave  chase.  The  bear  soon  stopped  and  hid  himself 
behind  a  hummock,  and  when  the. captain  came  up  with 
him  he  was  disposed  to  make  fight.  His  whine  was  con- 
verted into  a  defiant  growl,  and  he  charged  his  pursuer ; 
but  a  well-aimed  shot  brought  the  game  down  and  com- 
pleted the  hunt. 

It  only  remained  now  to  get  the  animals  aboard,  to 
weigh  and  measure  them,  to  award  the  skins  to  the  rifles 


272  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

which  had  given  them  death-wounds.  This  last  was  no 
easy  matter;  but  finally,  after  much  discussion  and  some 
rather  animated  assertions,  such  as  usually  take  place  on 
like  occasions,  the  award  was  finally  made,  and  we  tied  up 
to  an  iceberg  that  promised  us  a  chance  for  watering  ship, 
and,  after  the  excitement  and  exposure  of  the  night,  we 
were  well  prepared  to  enjoy  a  good  breakfast  of  the  game 
we  had  brought  from  the  Duck  Islands. 

Casting  off  from  the  iceberg  next  day,  we  set  out  to 
look  for  further  game,  steaming  up  in  a  north-easterly 
direction  through  a  wide  lead.  Presently  we  saw  some- 
thing dark  on  the  edge  of  the  ice,  and  soon  made  it  out  to 
be  a  seal,  a  very  large  one,  of  the  barbed  species.  We 
knew  from  former  experience  how  very  wild  they  were, 
and,  slacking  speed,  we  approached  cautiously.  At  first 
he  appeared  to  be  asleep,  dozing  lazily  in  the  warm  sun ; 
but  if  so,  the  noise  of  the  steamer  awoke  him,  and  he  grew 
restive  and  alarmed.  Evidently  he  was  not  to  be  caught 
as  the  bears  had  been,  and  if  we  would  shoot  him  we  must 
exercise  great  care ;  so  the  headway  of  the  steamer  was 
slackened  still  further,  and  we  all  lay  low  behind  the  bul- 
warks as  we  glided  slowly  along,  thus  stalking  the  ani- 
mal in  a  somewhat  unusual  fashion.  But  he  was  too  old 
to  be  cheated,  and  when  still  two  rifle-shots  away  he  threw 
up  head  and  tail,  and  floundered  into  the  water.  Then  he 
swam  off,  and  brought  his  almost  human  -  looking  face 
above  the  surface  not  twenty  yards  away,  then  took  a 
deliberate  look  at  us,  and  before  a  rifle  could  be  aimed  he 
had  apparently  satisfied  himself,  for  he  turned  heels  over 
head,  and  with  a  terrific  splash  disappeared  to  be  seen  no 
more. 

This  little  incident  would  not  be  worth  naming,  since  it 
was  an  entirely  unsuccessful  feat  of  hunting,  had  it  not 
been  that  at  the  very  moment  the  seal  disappeared  from 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM.  278 

the  ice  an  immense  bear  sprang  out  from  behind  a  ridge 
of  hummocks,  along  which  he  had  evidently  been  crawl- 
ing, stalking  the  very  same  seal  that  we  were  after.  We 
had  clearly  robbed  the  beast  of  his  breakfast,  and  he  ap- 
peared to  be  more  disgusted  \vith  the  circumstance  than 
alarmed  by  us.  Yet  he  was  not  quite  so  unsuspicious  as 
the  bears  we  had  before  encountered.  He  was  the  largest 
bear  I  had  ever  seen,  and  we  wanted  him  badly.  He 
looked  splendid  as  he  stood  there  upon  the  flte.  The  mo- 
ment he  saw  the  Panther  he  came  to  a  dead  stand,  and 
made  no  further  movement  than  to  turn  his  head  first  to 
one  side  and  then  to  the  other,  in  a  sort  of  measured  oscil- 
lation. There  was  evidently  upon  his  mind  a  feeling  of 
irresolution  that  was  constantly  increasing;  yet  it  did  not 
seem  as  if  he  was  willing  to  own  to  himself  that  he  was 
afraid,  until  the  steamer  coming  in  contact  quite  unavoid- 
ably with  a  piece  of  ice  made  a  considerable  crash,  which 
settled  the  bear  into  a  suspicion  that  the  object  he  was 
looking  at  was  hardly  to  be  trusted.  He  wheeled  sud- 
denly round  on  his  hind-legs,  like  a  horse  wheeling  at  play 
in  a  pasture,  made  a  most  magnificent  bound  across  a  pool 
of  water,  and  then  took  himself  off  quite  leisurely,  turning 
his  head  back  over  his  shoulder  with  every  step,  to  have  a 
further  look  at  us.  Occasionally  he  would  give  a  snort, 
attended  with  an  extra  leap,  and  then  go  waddling  on 
again  at  the  same  stiff-legged  and  snow-shoe  pace  as  be- 
fore described  in  the  case  of  the  other  bears  which  we  had 
hitherto  pursued  and  captured.  But  for  all  he  had  still 
clearly  some  lingering  doubts  of  the  Panther's  hostile  dis- 
position, and,  allowing  this  feeling  to  get  the  better  of  him, 
he  came  to  a  dead  stand,  and  squared  himself  round  to 
have  a  better  look  at  us ;  then  he  advanced  a  few  paces, 
stopped  and  fixed  his  gaze  upon  us  steadily.  Meanwhile 
the  Panther  lay  still  upon  the  waters,  and  appeared  to 

M2 


274  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

have  her  eye  upon  him,  and  the  two  stood,  as  if  trying  to 
stare  each  other  out  of  countenance,  for  some  minutes. 
The  bear  seemed  at  length  to  be  getting  charmed,  for  he 
advanced  a  hundred  yards  or  so  with  the  greatest  cool- 
ness and  deliberation ;  and  then,  as  if  suddenly  recollecting 
his  previous  prudential  notions,  he  wheeled  short  around 
as  before,  took  a  huge  leap,  and  went  upon  the  back  track 
again. 

To  look  afr  the  animal  now  and  watch  all  his  antics,  one 
would  think  him  as  mad  as  a  March  hare.  He  turned 
first  to  the  right  and  then  to  the  left,  after  he  had  gone  a 
little  way,  and  then  he  began  to  move  up  and  down  in 
front  of  us,  like  a  sentry  on  post,  acting  very  deliberately 
all  the  while,  poking  out  his  head  and  drawing  it  in  again 
like  a  turtle,  elevating  his  nose  as  high  as  he  could,  and 
then  depressing  it  again  close  down  upon  the  ice,  occa- 
sionally stopping  short  and  looking  at  the  Panther  side- 
ways. 

All  of  these  manoeuvres,  it  must  be  understood,  were  for 
the  special  benefit  of  the  Panther,  for  we  on  board  of  her 
were  closely  hidden  behind  the  bulwarks,  with  nothing 
but  our  eyes  exposed.  Up  to  this  time  it  was  clear 
enough  that  the  bear  had  not  been  seriously  frightened. 
Like  the  others,  he  was  in  some  doubt  and  uncertainty 
about  the  meaning  of  the  dark  object,  and  was  filled  with 
curiosity.  We  had,  therefore,  great  hopes  that  he  would 
become  reconciled  to  the  Panther,  and  be  inclined  to  closer 
acquaintance.  It  is  not  an  uncommon  thing  for  a  bear  in 
Melville  Bay  to  leave  the  ice  and  swim  off  to  a  vessel.  I 
have  known  them  to  come  deliberately  alongside,  attract- 
ed thither,  no  doubt,  by  the  smell  of  bones  which  were 
burning  in  the  galley — a  whaleman's  device  for  attracting 
the  bears.  But  the  sight  or  smell  of  a  human  being,  or  of 
a  dog,  alarms  them  at  once,  and  they  instantly  make  off. 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM.  275 

In  the  burning  bones  they  find,  no  doubt,  something  sa- 
vory and  suggestive  of  food. 

We  felt  greatly  encouraged  when  we  saw  the  bear 
begin  to  march  up  and  down  in  front  of  us,  as  if  standing 
guard  ;  but  unfortunately  the  Panther  could  not  forever 
hold  her  breath,  and  with  the  first  gush  of  steam  through 
the  escape-pipe  old  Bruin  bounded  up  in  the  air  as  if  pos- 
sessed, gave  a  fierce  snort,  and  ran  away  as  fast  as  his 
legs  would  carry  him ;  and  in  order  that  he  might  make 
the  best  time  possible,  and  show  off  his  points  to  the  best 
advantage,  we  fired  a  volley  from  our  rifles  after  him, 
without  the  least  hope  or  chance  of  doing  him  any  dam- 
age, owing  to  the  great  distance.  He  did  not  now  pause 
until  he  was  a  good  quarter  of  a  mile  away  from  us,  when 
he  faced  round. once  more,  seemed  to  bestow  upon  us  an 
approving  nod,  and  then,  with  much  deliberation,  made  for 
the  opposite  side  of  the  floe,  where  we  now  busied  our 
minds  with  devising  ways  and  means  of  reaching  him. 
But  no  way  could  we  see  but  once  more  to  put  the  Pan- 
ther into  the  ice — no  very  difficult  matter ;  but  here  the 
ice  was  unusually  thick,  and  there  did  not  appear  to  be 
much  chance  of  breaking  through  it.  To  go  around  the 
floe  was  to  makefa  circuit  of  several  miles,  and  long  be- 
fore we  could  reach  the  point  towards  which  the  bear  was 
going  he  would  be  far  enough  away. 

Running  down  a  little  way  near  the  edge  of  the  floe, 
we  discovered  a  narrow  isthmus,  against  which  the  cap- 
tain put  the  vessel,  as  before,  under  full  headway,  but  with 
less  happy  results.  Only  a  few  fathoms  of  the  ice  were 
broken  away.  Owing  to  this  circumstance  the  shock  was 
greater  than  on  either  of  the  former  occasions ;  but,  noth- 
ing daunted,  the  captain  backed  her  out  and  put  her  in 
four  successive  times,  and  was  rewarded  in  the  end  by 
starting  a  crack,  through  which  the  steamer  was  forced. 


276  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

We  were  now  in  the  same  lead  for  which  the  bear  was 
making,  and  we  could  with  our  glasses  still  see  him  upon 
the  ice,  though  very  near  the  water,  which  by  this  time  he 
could  readily  have  reached  had  he  done  his  best.  We 
bore  down  upon  him  with  all  possible  haste.  Presently 
he  disappeared.  He  had  taken  the  water,  and  was  mak- 
ing for  the  opposite  ice,  which  was  very  solid,  and  was 
held  firm  and  fast  by  a  great  number  of  icebergs,  which 
were  imbedded  in  it.  If  he  once  reached  this  the  game 
was  up. 

The  second  mate  was  sent  aloft,  and  detected  him  in  the 
water  heading  for  a  point  which,  instead  of  being  low  and 
flat,  as  is  usual,  was  rough  and  hummocky.  The  Panther 
was  pointed  there  also,  with  the  view  of  cutting  off  his  re- 
treat. This  once  accomplished,  the  bear  was  of  course 
ours.  Seeing  our  purpose,  the  animal,  now  evidently  in  a 
great  state  of  terror,  swam  away  for  dear  life,  making  a 
splendid  spectacle  of  himself  as  he  floated  along  with  his 
nose  only  above  the  surface,  and  was  clearly  in  much  the 
condition  of  the  soldiers  who  swam  the  river  from  the 
battle  of  Ball's  Bluff — he  was  not  hurt,  but  fearfully  de- 
moralized. 

We  were  only  about  sixty  yards  away  when  he  reached 
the  point,  and  we  now  felt  sure  of  him.  We  had  not  suc- 
ceeded in  cutting  off  his  line  of  retreat,  but  we  had  come 
within  easy  range ;  and  since  the  vessel  was  forging 
ahead,  we  should  be  almost  atop  of  the  animal  by  the 
time  he  got  out  of  the  water.  The  Panther  was  going 
fairly  for  the  ice,  and  we  were  all  ready  to  fire  the  mo- 
ment he  showed  himself.  But  the  animal  was  too  cun- 
ning for  us.  The  rough  hummocks  of  the  point  hid  from 
our  view  a  bight  on  the  opposite  side,  into  which  the 
bear  swam  for  safety ;  and  now,  thoroughly  sheltered  be- 
hind the  ice  for  which  we  were  making,  he  was  getting  the 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM,  279 

better  of  us.  With  that  quickness  of  perception  character- 
istic of  the  skillful  sailor,  the  captain  grasped  the  situation, 
and,  seeing  that  to  round  the  point  was  to  lose  the  bear 
for  certain,  he  shouted  to  the  man  at  the  wheel  to  put  his 
helm  hard  a-port,  which  caused  us  to  bring  up  with  a  ter- 
rific thurnp  a  short  distance  from  the  point,  where  the  ice 
was  comparatively  thin.  The  moment  the  ship  struck  and 
buried  herself  a  little,  the  captain  let  himself  down  by  a 
rope  from  the  cat-head,  and,  followed  by  two  other  rifles, 
ran  over  the  floe  towards  the  bend  of  the  bight  for  which 
the  bear  was  making,  but  not  in  time  to  intercept  him. 
He  reached  the  ice,  and  drew  his  enormous  body  out  of 
the  water  a  hundred  yards  from  the  riflemen,  and  bounded 
away  with  the  speed  of  the  wind,  not  stopping  even  long 
enough  to  shake  himself  of  the  great  quantity  of  water 
in  his  long  hair.  Every  body  tired  at  him,  of  course, 
but  none  of  our  balls  took  effect ;  at  least  none  of  them 
produced  any  impression  upon  his  speed.  The  captain 
thought  he  saw  blood,  and  kept  up  the  race  for  half  a 
mile,  hoping  to  see  him  drop  or  halt,  as  the  one  he  had 
chased  before,  mortally  wounded ;  but  the  animal  was  soon 
out  of  sight  among  the  icebergs,  and  our  eagerly  coveted 
game  was  gone. 

We  were  all  much  chagrined  by  this  mishap.  Every 
man  had  regarded  him  as  his  own  particular  prize,  and 
felt  quite  sure  of  him.  We  had  even  taken  the  measure- 
ment and  weight  of  his  body.  One  was  going  to  have  his 
skin  spread  out  for  a  mat,  with  his  head  stuffed  and  his 
paws  on.  Another  was  going  to  drive  four-in-hand  in  the 
Park,  and  have  him  for  a  sleigh-robe ;  another  was  going 
to  sell  him  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  currency,  and 
he  knew  where  to  place  the  article ;  but  all  these  bright  an- 
ticipations came  to  a  most  lamentable  end  when  the  bear 
carried  off  his  own  skin  in  his  own  four-in-hand  fashion. 


280  THE  LAXU    OF  DESOLATION. 

We  were  soon  consoled  for  this  disappointment  by  an- 
other alarm.  It  came  from  the  look-out  up  aloft,  and  was 
answered  with  a  universal  "  Where  away  ?"  which  was 
answered  in  turn  by  the  most  satisfactory  assurance  that 
they  were  down  on  the  extreme  point  of  a  long,  narrow 
floe,  and  were  apparently  easily  accessible.  They  were 
three  in  number.  We  bore  down  upon  them  without  de- 
lay, the  man  aloft  conning  the  ship,  until  they  were  seen 
from  the  deck,  when  the  captain,  as  usual,  gave  his  own 
orders. 

The  ice  upon  which  the  bears  were  proved  this  time  to 
be  very  thin  and  rotten,  as  was  evidenced  by  the  fact  that 
the  animals  frequently  broke  through.  They  could  not, 
therefore,  travel  very  fast,  even  if  they  should  become 
frightened  ;  and  then,  besides,  as  we  came  nearer  to  them 
we  perceived  that,  no  matter  how  fast  they  might  travel, 
there  was  but  little  chance  of  their  escaping  us,  for  in 
whatever  direction  they  might  attempt  to  go  we  could 
follow  them ;  and  when  in  the  water  they  would  be  easily 
overtaken,  as  they  would  have  at  least  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
to  swim  before  reaching  another  floe. 

The  Panther  tore  through  the  ice  this  time  without  dif- 
ficulty ;  and  she  actually  broke  the  ice  up  with  such  facil- 
ity, and  approached  the  bears  with  such  rapidity,  that 
they  were  almost  dropped  into  the  water  —  at  least  a 
crack  was  forced  open  ahead  of  us,  almost  underneath  the 
bears'  feet.  They  took  to  it  immediately,  and  we  almost 
ran  over  them.  As  we  approached  we  might  have  shot 
them  very  easily ;  but  the  photographers  were  crazy  for 
a  chance  at  them,  and,  seeing  that  there  was  no  possibility 
of  their  escape,  we  sacrificed  our  impatience  in  the  interest 
of  art. 

The  bears  having  swum  a  little  while,  crawled  upon  the 
ice.  By  this  time  we  had  wheeled  round,  and  the  photog- 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM.  281 

raphers  had  a  fine  chance  at  them.  The  hunters  were 
impatient,  but  they  had  not  long  to  wait,  for  the  delight- 
ed "  colonel "  soon  thrust  his  head  out  of  his  photographic 
box  and  shouted, "  I'm  done  with  them,  gentlemen."  At 
this  moment  the  bears  took  the  water  again. 

We  made  short  work  of  cutting  through  a  tongue  of 
ice  which  intervened ;  and,  coming  upon  the  animals  as 
they  swam,  we  ceased  playing  with  them  as  a  cat  plays 
with  a  mouse  before  swallowing  it,  and  at  thirty  yards 
gave  them  a  volley,  and  three  more  bears  were  added  to 
our  trophies.  The  carcasses  were  soon  hoisted  on  deck, 
and  we  then  steered  for  Wilcox  Point,  without,  however, 
seeing  any  bears  by  the  way.  Then  we  headed  in  for  the 
Devil's  Thumb,  and,  discovering  a  moderately  firm  floe, 
which  seemed  to  be  held  in  its  position  by  some  grounded 
icebergs,  we  steered  for  it,  run  the  Panther  a  hundred 
yards  into  it,  and  proceeded  to  let  our  six  prizes  down  on 
the  ice,  where  we  soon  had  the  skins  off,  some  for  speci- 
mens, and  some  for  robes  and  mats — each  one  who  was 
the  fortunate  possessor  of  a  skin  following  the  bent  of  his 
fancy  in  the  matter. 

Pushing  off  from  the  floe,  we  steamed  to.  within  two 
miles  of  the  Thumb,  and  anchored.  Probably  no  vessel 
had  ever  been  so  near  it  as  we  were,  and  although  our  sit- 
uation was  one  of  some  peril,  we  did  not  feel  justified  in 
losing  the  opportunity  so  auspiciously  presented  to  us. 
We  climbed  the  hills  all  round,  and  everywhere  we  went 
we  discovered  numerous  traces  of  reindeer,  but  we  did  not 
succeed  in  finding  any  of  the  animals  themselves.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  they  exist  there  in  considerable 
numbers,  and  had  we  followed  them  inland  it  is  equally 
certain  that  we  would  have  found  any  number  of  them. 
But  for  an  enterprise  of  that  description  we  had  not  suffi- 
cient time  to  stay — or,  rather,  the  threatening  nature  of 


282  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

the  ice,  and  the  uncertainty  of  our  situation,  made  it  im- 
portant that  all  hands  should  be  at  least  within  signalling 
distance,  that  we  might  steam  out  from  underneath  the 
Devil's  Thumb  upon  the  first  threat  of  danger. 

To  climb  the  Thumb  we  found  to  be  impossible,  but  we 
reached  its  base,  and  from  there — an  elevation  of  thirteen 
hundred  feet,  according  to  my  barometer — we  overlooked 
one  of  the  most  remarkable  scenes  that  ever  met  the  eye 
of  man.  Such  a  wilderness  of  ice,  such  a  forest  of  ice- 
bergs, such  boundless  desolation,  would  be  difficult  to  de- 
scribe, or  to  be  appreciated  except  by  the  actual  observer. 
Let  me,  in  a  mechanical  sort  of  way,  make  the  attempt  to 
convey  to  the  reader's  mind  some  idea  of  this  remarkable 
scene. 

The  Devil's  Thumb  is  an  island — at  least,  without  actu- 
ally sailing  round  it  in  my  boat  (being  prevented  by  the 
ice),  there  were  such  indications  as  to  make  it  certain  that, 
if  not  an  island,  it  is  connected  with  the  main-land  only  by 
a  very  low  and  narrow  isthmus.  It  lies  at  the  head  of  a 
deep  bay,  and  it  is  from  five  to  eight  miles  long,  by  from 
three  to  five  wide.  The  Thumb  itself  is  on  the  farther 
side  from  the  sea,  and  is  about  six  hundred  feet  high 
above  its  base,  rising  like  a  church  spire,  and  as  abruptly. 
Down  into  the  bay,  to  the  north  and  east  from  the  island, 
come  two  great  glaciers,  one  about  twelve  miles  wide,  the 
other  about  three.  These  glaciers  climbed  up  steadily,  or 
descended,  I  should  rather  say,  between  the  coast  mount- 
ains in  steady  streams,  which,  joining  together,  and  with 
others  to  the  north  and  south  of  them,  form  a  long  level 
line  against  the  sky ;  and  this  is  the  summit  of  the  great 
icy  sea— the  mer  de  glace — which  covers  the  whole  length 
of  the  Greenland  continent,  and  which,  from  its  exhaust- 
less  bed,  sends  down  through  every  valley  opening  to  Baf- 
fin's Bay  such  streams  as  these.  And  these  streams  send 


HUNTING  BY  STEAM.  283 

off  into  the  sea  the  icebergs,  which  are  but  trifling  frag- 
ments of  the  glacier  itself. 

The  icebergs  coming  from  these  two  glaciers  about  the 
Devil's  Thumb  were  altogether  countless.  They  tilled  up 
the  whole  north  side  of  the  bay,  and  extended  out  to  the 
sea  for  miles.  The  time  of  my  visit  was  near  midnight, 
and  with  a  clear,  bright  sun  illuminating  the  scene,  scat- 
tering everywhere  its  splendors,  I  could  but  wish  for  some- 
thing better  than  a  simple  note-book  and  the  use  of  words 
to  embody  an  idea  of  the  view  before  me.  An  artist 
alone,  with  his  pallette  and  his  pencil,  could  convey  any 
proper  effect  of  it.  My  powers  of  sketching  were  quite 
inadequate.  "Blob"  might  have  done  better,  but  no 
amount  of  persuasion  could  induce  him*  to  climb  a  hill 
marked  in  the  devil's  name.  Of  all  the  situations  of  the 
cruise,  this  view  was  the  finest  beyond  comparison,  and  to 
see  it  was  enough  to  repay  one  for  all  the  trouble  and  vex- 
ation and  hazard  of  a  dozen  such  voyages.  We  missed 
a  photograph  of  it  for  the  same  reason  we  missed  "  Blob's" 
sketch — a  fearful  superstition.  Had  it  been  called  "The 
Pillar  of  the  Church"  instead  of  "The  Devil's  Thumb," 
the  whole  cabin  mess  would  have  climbed  it  willingly. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  V. 

AMONG  THE  ICE-FIELDS  OF  MELVILLE  BAY. 

I  WAS  much  disappointed  that  we  could  not  prolong  our 
stay  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Devil's  Thumb.  But  our  situa- 
tion there  was  indeed  a  hazardous  one.  The  ice  was 
crowding  about  us  all  the  time,  and,  driven  by  a  three- 
knot  current  that  whirled  it  round  in  the  wildest  manner, 
it  was  not  surprising  that  the  captain  should  declare  the 
Thumb  to  be  na  proper  place  for  the  Panther.  Accord- 
ingly, after  doing  the  best  we  could  hydrographically,  top- 
ographically, and  artistically,  we  crawled  out  while  the 
chance  was  good  and  steamed  northward  into  the  pack. 

To  describe  our  adventures  of  the  next  few  days  would 
be  to  repeat  much  of  what  I  have  said  before  about  the 
pursuit  of  bears  and  encounters  with  ice-fields.  Neither 
ice-navigation  nor  bear-hunting  can  present  much  of  vari- 
ety. Even  to  ourselves  both  became  monotonous  in  the 
end ;  and  we  even  received  the  cry  of  "  bears "  without 
excitement,  and  were  knocked  off  our  legs  by  the  thump- 
ing of  the  Panther  against  the  ice  without  emotion. 

Besides  the  bears  and  an  occasional  seal  (none  of  which 
were  we  lucky  enough,  however,  to  shoot),  we  saw  no  liv- 
ing thing  except  an  occasional  flock  of  little  auks,  or 
rotche,  as  they  are  called  by  the  whalers.  These  are  the 
cunningest  little  divers  imaginable.  They  are  family  rela- 
tions of  the  lumme  already  described ;  and,  although  only 
about  one-third  the  size,  are  like  them  in  color.  The  wa- 
ter is  alive  with  shrimps  about  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in 
length;  and  these  little  birds,  whose  flight  is  very  rapid, 


AMONG   THE  ICE -FIELDS   OF  MEL  VILLE  BA  Y.          285 

come  from  the  distant  land  to  feed.  Myriads  of  them 
whizzed  over  us,  affording  a  fine  opportunity  for  the 
sportsman.  Sometimes  large  flocks  of  them  would  alight 
upon  the  water  and,  after  satisfying  their  appetites,  would 
crawl  out  upon  the  ice,  and,  sitting  along  the  margin  of  it, 
dry  themselves  in  the  warm  sun. 

Our  hunts  after  seals  were  most  tantalizing.  Great 
numbers  of  them  came  up  out  of  the  water,  and  stretching 
themselves  on  the  ice  in  the  blazing  sunshine,  went  to 
sleep  there.  But  they  were  all  too  shy  for  us.  We  ap- 
proached them  with  steamer  and  with  boat,  but  it  was  of 
no  avail.  If  they  did  not  sleep  with  one  eye  open,  they 
certainly  never  slept  with  both  ears  shut ;  and  long  be- 
fore they  had  come  within  effective  range  of  our  rifles, 
they  were  off  the  ice  and  into  the  water,  and  although 
they  might  bob  up  and  down  in  the  sea,  looking  at  us 
within  a  distance  of  fifty  yards  or  so,  they  were  always 
careful  not  to  expose  themselves  long  enough  to  allow  of 
our  drawing  a  sight  on  them. 

The  weather  was  superb ;  for  the  most  part  the  air  was 
entirely  calm,  and  in  the  perpetual  sunshine  our  enjoyment 
was  uninterrupted.  Sometimes  we  were  beset  among  the 
ice-fields,  once  or  twice  drifted  upon  an  iceberg  while  we 
were  helplessly  involved  among  heavy  floes,  and  there  was 
therefore  enough  of  danger  to  deprive  the  days  of  absolute 
stupidity.  This  ice-navigation,  is  never  wholly  free  from 
hazard,  and  nothing  can  be  more  treacherous  than  the 
movements  of  the  pack.  Great  skill  and  caution  are  al- 
ways necessary  on  the  part  of  the  officers  of  the  ship,  and, 
since  we  were  out  of  sight  of  land  much  of  the  time  for 
several  days,  the  mate  had  no  temptation  to  indulge  his 
favorite  pastime  of  sounding  with  the  Panthers  keel.  He 
would,  indeed,  be  at  all  times  a  capital  sailor  but  for  his 
weakness  for  running  the  ship  ashore. 


286  THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 

I  have,  unhappily,  none  of  those  harrowing  adventures 
to  record  which  usually  make  up  the  accounts  of  Melville 
Bay  voyagers.  Once  only  did  we  encounter  a  real  "  nip." 
The  Panther  was  then  pretty  badly  squeezed,  and  we  had 
a  lively  exhibition  of  the  power  of  the  closing  ice-field. 
Strong  though  the  Panther  was,  we  could  readily  see  that 
she  would  be  as  an  egg-shell  in  the  hand  if  caught  where 
the  ice  was  in  rapid  movement.  Fortunately  it  was  only 
a  revolving  floe  which  beset  us,  and  not  the  moving  pack 
that  was  passing  down  bodily. 

At  length,  after  winding  and  twisting  about  to  our 
hearts'  content,  and  having  seen  the  Melville  Bay  pack  and 
the  Melville  Bay  icebergs  in  every  aspect  possessing  inter- 
est for  us,  the  Panther  was  brought  up  alongside  a  heavy 
floe  many  miles  in  extent,  and  there  she  was,  for  the  last 
time,  made  fast.  A  consultation  revealed  the  fact  that  no 
one  cared  particularly  to  go  any  farther.  A  meridian  al- 
titude fixed  our  position  at  latitude  75°,  near  the  Sabine 
Islands — farther  in  the  direction  of  the  North  Pole,  cer- 
tainly, than  any  pleasure-seekers  had  ever  gone  before  in 
that  quarter.  We  were  at  least  a  hundred  miles  within 
the  "  pack,"  and  every  one  was  abundantly  satisfied  with 
his  performances,  whether  they  had  been  sporting,  artistic, 
scientific,  or  what  not. 

Our  last  day,  tied  up  to  the  old  floe,  was  a  memorable 
one  in  our  calendar.  The  temperature  was  quite  warm, 
at  one  time  reaching  60°  in  the  shade,  and,  exposed  as  we 
had  been  so  long,  this  seemed  to  us  a  sultry  heat.  And 
this  was  the  more  strange  that  we  were  in  the  midst  of 
a  perfect  forest  of  icebergs.  The  floe  to  which  we  lay 
moored  was,  so  far  as  the  eye  could  perceive,  limitless  in 
extent — the  thickness  was  about  two  and  a  half  feet,  and 
for  the  most  part  it  was  as  level  as  the  sea  in  a  calm. 
The  snows  of  winter  had  melted  from  its  surface,  and  here 


MOO1JEL)    TO    A    FLOE    IN    -MELVILLE    BAY. 


AMONG   THE  ICE-FIELDS  OF  MELVILLE  BAY.          289 

t 

and  there  the  water  had  gathered  in  shallow  pools,  giving 
something  the  appearance  of  a  marsh.  Through  the  field 
numerous  icebergs  protruded,  like  huge  rocks  rising  above 
a  plain ;  the  universal  whiteness,  broken  only  by  the  deep 
blue  of  the  water,  produced  a  glare  that  was  sometimes 
painful  to  the  eye,  and,  when  the  sun  was  shining  at  its 
brightest,  quite  overpowering. 

Our  people  amused  themselves  in  various  ways.  Some 
carried  out  boards  from  the  ship,  and,  dropping  them  upon 
the  ice,  went  soundly  to  sleep  upon  them  in  the  hot  sun. 
Others  played  foot-ball;  while  some  exercised  their  skill 
with  pistol  and  rifle  upon  a  target  painted  with  ink  upon 
the  side  of  a  berg.  Others,  again,  ran  foot-races,  and  all 
hands  made  the  most  of  the  strange  and  unusual  situation. 
There  were  neither  bears  nor  seals  to  attract  to  more  se- 
rious pastime,  and  no  living  thing  besides  ourselves  was 
seen  in  this  brilliantly  illuminated  wilderness  except  a 
flock  of  rotche,  which  came  from  the  northward,  and 
dropped  down  in  the  sea  only  a  little  way  from  us.  After- 
ward they  climbed  out  of  the  water  and  stood  in  a  row, 
bolt  upright,  on  the  edge  of  the  ice,  staring  at  us  in  a  most 
cunning  and  saucy  manner.  No  doubt  they  had  come 
from  the  extensive  rookeries  on  the  north  side  of  Melville 
Bay,  where  the  shore  is  for  miles  and  miles  literally  alive 
with  them. 

While  the  idlers  were  thus  amusing  themselves,  the  art- 
ists were  busy  enough ;  and,  for  myself,  I  found  sufficient 
occupation  in  measuring  and  closely  examining  an  iceberg 
which  lay  partly  imbedded  in  the  floe  about  two  hundred 
yards  from  us.  It  was  a  very  remarkable  berg,  both  in 
form  and  dimensions,  though,  in  the  latter  particular, 
many  that  I  have  seen  exceeded  it.  Its  greatest  height, 
determined  from  a  carefully  measured  base-line,  was  230 
feet,  and  its  extreme  length  1 040  feet.  We  called  it  "  the 

N 


290  THE  LANti   OF  DESOLATION. 

ruined  castle,"  and,  indeed,  there  was  only  required  a  very 
slight  assistance  from  the  imagination  to  complete  the  out- 
lines of  an  ancient  work  of  defense  turned  adrift  upon  the 
sea  in  some  unaccountable  manner,  as  if  to  make  room  for 
more  modern  inventions.  I  estimated  its  cubical  contents 
at  fifty  millions  of  tons. 

Our  castled  iceberg  can  hardly  be  appreciated  even  by 
a  detailed  description,  for  it  is  difficult  to  describe  so  grand 
an  object  even  by  contrasting  it  with  familiar  things.  In 
the  first  place,  there  was  an  open  portal  and  a  lowered 
draw-bridge ;  but  the  latter  did  not  look  very  secure,  be- 
ing but  a  portion  of  the  ice-field  on  which  we  stood,  that 
had  been  crowded  into  the  opening.  So  we  did  not  ven- 
ture upon  the  passage,  but  rather  gazed  through  the  arch- 
way at  the  blue  sky  beyond,  until  the  curiosity  was  satis- 
fied, when  we  walked  as  far  around  the  ruin  as  the  nature 
of  the  ice  would  allow.  The  rear  proved  to  be  much 
lower  than  the  front ;  and,  in  fact,  the  front  and  one  side 
presented  from  both  points  of  view  a  no  bad  imitation  of 
a  lofty  wall  (now  partly  crumbled  down),  which  had  once 
been  the  half  of  the  wall  inclosing  the  central  space,  or 
court-yard,  to  which  the  portal  led.  This  space  was  about 
one-eighth  of  a  mile  in  diameter,  and  was  very  rough  and 
rugged,  and  it  lay  some  fifty  to  eighty  feet  above  the  sea- 
level.  When  the  sun  came  around  to  that  side,  and  shone 
down  upon  that  part  of  the  wonderful  ruin,  and  we  stood 
upon  the  ice-field  in  front  and  in  deep  shadow,  looking 
through  the  open  portal,  the  effect  was  most  enchanting ; 
and  it  is,  indeed,  impossible  to  conceive  of  any  thing  more 
delightful  in  the  way  of  light  and  shade  and  color  than  it 
presented.  When  the  sun  was  shining  on  the  ice,  as  seen 
through  the  portal,  the  surface  had  the  appearance  of  del- 
icate white  satin.  The  shadows  were  the  most  tender  and 
delicious  azure,  while  in  those  places  where  the  ice-field 


THE   ICEBERG   CASTLE. 


AMONG  THE  ICE-FIELDS  OF  MELVILLE  BAY.          293 

was  removed  from  the  berg,  and  an  overhanging  portion 
of  it  received  the  reflected  light  from  the  water  below,  the 
color  was  the  most  perfectly  transparent  green  that  can 
be  imagined. 

I  have  so  many  times  described  these  icebergs  in  all 
their  varying  characters,  that  any  thing  more  might  seem 
like  too  much ;  but  I  can  not  pass  from  the  description  of 
this  castle-like  natural  formation  without  alluding  to  the 
wonderful  variety  of  shapes  assumed  by  these  floating  ice- 
mountains.  There  is  scarcely  a  conceivable  form  that  I 
have  not  seen:  birds  and  savage  beasts  and  effigies  of 
domes  and  towers,  and  other  objects,  animate  and  inani- 
mate, are  seen  continually.  Human  faces  stare  at  you  on 
every  side  ;  huge  busts  of  men  and  forms  of  women  I  have 
often  observed ;  and  once  a  giant  statue  stood  against  the 
sky,  outrivalling  the  famous  Colossus  of  Rhodes,  which  it 
imitated  in  form  and  size. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE  LAST  WHITE  MAN. 

As  this  was  to  be  our  last  tie-up  in  Melville  Bay,  and 
as  every  body  was  well  satisfied  that  Melville  Bay  had 
been  thoroughly  "  done,"  there  was  now  some  impatience 
to  hear  the  order  given  to  "  cast  off." 

But  the  order  did  not  come  even  with  the  close  of  the 
day,  and  there  we  were  clearly  to  remain  until  the  mor- 
row. Meanwhile  a  light  wind  set  in  from  the  south-east, 
and,  coming  directly  from  the  Greenland  glaciers,  it 
brought  the  temperature  down  below  the  freezing-point; 
and  when  at  length  "  seven  bells  "  aroused  the  ship's  com- 
pany from  their  slumbers,  the  Panther  was  a  prisoner.  In 
every  direction,  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach,  the  sea, 
where  it  had  been  open  the  evening  before,  was  now  cov- 
ered with  ice.  In  many  places  this  young  ice  would  bear 
a  man's  weight.  It  was  a  very  needless  predicament  to 
have  been  placed  in,  but  these  Newfoundland  sailors  must 
not  for  the  world  be  robbed  of  their  night's  rest. 

Luckily  the  Panther  was  strong,  or  we  should  have 
lain  there  beside  the  ruined  castle  all  winter.  It  was  at 
least  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after  we  had  actually  at  length 
cast  off  from  the  floe  before  we  budged  an  inch,  and  then 
it  was  a  long  while  before  we  made  much  headway.  By- 
and-by,  however,  we  went  ahead  at  the  rate  of  one  knot 
an  hour,  and  then,  after  that,  crunched  through  the  trans- 
parent film  that  was  on  the  sea.  The  crystals  flew  to  left 
and  right ;  and  when  the  sun  came  out,  shining  upon  the 
flying  fragments,  it  seemed  as  if  we  were  cutting  through 


WE   STEAM   AWAY   FROM   THE   MIDNIGHT  6ITN. 


THE  LAST  WHITE  MAX.  297 

a  waste  of  jewelry.  A  few  hours  of  this  sort  of  running 
brought  us  into  the  clear  water  of  an  opening  lead,  and 
thence  our  flight  from  Melville  Bay  was  made  much  after 
the  same  fashion  as  that  of  our  going  in — the  same  cut- 
ting through  and  breaking  down  of  floes,  and  the  same 
wild  excitement  as  before. 

Our  good  ship  seemed  to  have  a  realizing  sense  of  her 
situation,  and  to  enjoy  as  much  as  we  the  prospect  which 
had  so  suddenly  overtaken  us  together  of  wintering  in  the 
dreaded  "pack."  Welch,  the  fireman,  declared  that  the 
Panther  was  a  ship  "  as  knowed  a  thing  or  two." 

When  the  day  closed  we  had  Wilcox  Point  and  the 
Devil's  Thumb  abeam.  The  great  ice-fields  which  on  our 
way  north  had  so  much  embarrassed  us  on  entering  Mel- 
ville Bay  had  by  this  time  either  drifted  or  melted  away; 
and  now  through  an  unobstructed  sea  we  held  our  course 
for  the  Duck  Islands,  and  steamed  away  from  the  mid- 
night sun. 

From  the  Duck  Islands  we  groped  our  way  down  the 
coast  through  one  of  those  provoking  fogs  which  so  often 
come  to  pester  the  life  of  the  Arctic  voyager,  and  which 
set  upon  us  early  in  the  night. 

I  do  not  remember  to  have  ever  seen  any  thing  more 
gloomy  than  the  scene  before  us  when  the  fog  lifted  in 
the  early  morning.  We  had  been  lying  to  for  some  time, 
not  really  knowing  where  we  were;  but,  as  good -luck 
would  have  it,  we  found  that  we  were  pointed  fairly  be- 
tween two  remarkable  islands,  known  from  their  confor- 
mation as  Cone  and  Wedge.  Beyond  was  a  straight  pas- 
sage of  twenty  miles,  between  lofty,  cavernous,  brownish- 
red,  rocky  islets ;  and  beyond  these,  again,  was  to  be  seen, 
in  the  far  distance,  the  cold  line  of  the  mer  de  glace,  from 
which  come  pouring  down  cold  glaciers  to  the  sea.  Cold 
icebergs  lay  upon  the  leaden  waters;  a  cold  wind  was 

N2 


298  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

moaning  from  the  hills ;  and  although  the  sun  shone  out 
after  the  fog  had  vanished,  it  failed  to  throw  any  glow  of 
warmth  over  the  general  desolation,  or  to  dissolve  the  op- 
pressive chill. 

Steering  south-east,  we  passed  presently  around  a  large 
iceberg  which  had  before  obstructed  the  view,  and  then 
we  opened  a  low  point  of  land,  rugged  as  any  other  land 
in  sight,  and  as  utterly  without  sign  or  trace  of  vegeta- 
tion; and  yet  a  little  white  house  stood  upon  the  naked 
rock,  and  the  white  and  red  emblem  of  Danish  sovereignty 
fluttered  from  a  little  flag-staff  on  the  roof.  This  was  the 
house  we  had  seen  and  photographed  on  our  way  north — 
the  most  northern  house  of  all  the  world ;  and  in  this  lit- 
tle house,  in  this  fearful  desert,  dwells  a  Christian  family, 
with  no  other  human  beings  within  fifty  miles  of  them 
save  a  few  ignorant  savages. 

The  head  of  the  family  met  us  among  the  ice  in  a  boat 
a  mile  or  so  away.  He  had  a  swarthy  crew  of  skin-clad 
men,  and  as  he  hauled  in  alongside  of  us,  and  stood  up  in 
the  stern  of  his  boat,  I  recognized  at  once  the  sturdy  fig- 
ure, sandy  hair,  and  striking  features  of  Peter  Jensen.  I 
was  heartily  glad  to  see  him,  and  had  him  on  board  and 
by  the  hand  without  a  minute's  loss  of  time.  Then  we 
steamed  into  a  good  anchorage  and  went  ashore,  and  called 
upon  his  wife,  and  petted  his  children,  and  dined  with 
him  off  venison  and  eider-ducks.  The  wife  made  us  some 
capital  cakes,  and  we  had  cigars  and  Danish  pipes  and  ex- 
cellent coffee;  and  we  smoked  and  drank  and  chatted 
away  the  evening,  and  were  very  much  surprised,  when 
we  came  to  think  about  it,  that  we  had  had  a  very  pleas- 
ant time  here  in  this  remote  and  solitary  place,  within  a 
thousand  miles,  measured  as  the  crow  flies,  of  the  North 
Pole. 

But  there  was  something  indescribably  sad  to  me  in  the 


THE  LAST  WHITE  MAN.  301 

dreadful  isolation  of  this  family  who  had  entertained  us. 
It  is  worse  than  loneliness,  for  the  savages  around,  with 
their  filth  and  wretchedness,  and  their  packs  of  howling, 
vicious  dogs,  can  not  give  companionship  to  a  woman 
bred  in  Copenhagen,  nor  to  the  three  little  children  whom 
she  nurtured  with  the  carefulness  of  a  Christian  mother. 

These  children  were  two  pretty  flaxen-haired  girls — Jo- 
hana  Maria  and  Jennie  Caroline — of  five  and  seven  years. 
But  the  hope  of  the  house  was  Julius  Christian,  aged  three 
years  and  some  odd  months. 

They  had  all  been  troubled  with  the  scurvy,  and  I  did 
not  wonder  at  it.  What  could  these  poor  children  do  to 
preserve  their  health  by  outdoor  exercise  and  outdoor 
pastime  in  a  climate  where  the  snow  is  on  the  ground 
nine  months  out  of  the  twelve,  and  where  the  sun  is  not 
seen  in  winter  for  more  than  a  hundred  days ;  where  the 
house  must  be  banked  with  snow,  the  windows  double 
glazed,  the  stoves  and  lamps  kept  burning  constantly,  to 
ward  off  the  piercing  cold,  which  often  sinks  to  50°  below 
zero,  and  even  lower,  and  where  howling  gales,  filling  the 
air  with  snow-drift,  are  of  almost  daily  occurrence  ? 

The  four  rooms  of  the  house  were  fitted  up  with  a 
reasonable  degree  of  comfort,  and  with  great  neatness. 
There  were  some  ornaments  upon  the  walls — photographs 
of  relatives  and  friends,  and  cheap  colored  prints  of  Dan- 
ish battle  -  scenes,  in  some  of  which  Jensen  had  patri- 
otically borne  a  musket  in  the  ranks  before  he  came  to 
Greenland,  and  was  deservedly  proud  of  the  share  he  had 
in  the  war  of  1848  against  the  hated  Prussian. 

For  warmth  they  had  stoves  and  Danish  coal ;  and  then 
there  were  huge  bags  of  eider-down,  among  which  the 
children  buried  themselves  through  the  dark  cold  nights, 
piled  upon  the  betis,  and  one  might  think  the  cold  could 
never  reach  them  when  they  had  crawled  to  rest.  But 


302  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

even  children  can  not  sleep  all  the  time,  though  it  may  be 
always  dark;  and  the  loneliness  of  that  prison-house  to 
those  three  little  creatures,  when  the  winter  comes,  was  a 
painful  thing  to  contemplate.  But  then  the  wife !  The 
children  were  born  there,  and  had  no  other  associations ; 
but  through  the  desolate  winter  do  the  wife's  thoughts 
not  wander  sometimes  mournfully  and  regretfully  back  to 
the  society  and  the  changing  delights  and  changing  fash- 
ions of  the  world  wherein  she  lived  before  she  became  a 
bride,  and  left  it  foV  this  desert,  simply  that  she  might  be 
with  the  man  she  loved  ?  for  surely  there  could  be  noth- 
ing else  than  love  to  tempt  her  there.  She  made  no  com- 
plaint ;  she  appeared  cheerful,  and  may  have  been  happy. 
It  was  hard  for  me  to  think  so.  Hopeless,  indeed,  to  her 
this  life  of  toil,  anxiety,  and  suffering,  unless  the  blind  god 
gives  her  some  vast  measure  of  bliss  utterly  beyond 
man's  power  of  appreciation.  Alas,  how  little  men  really 
know  of  the  sacrifices  women  make  for  them  continually ! 
Was  the  man  ever  born  who  was  capable  of  such  an  exhi- 
bition of  unselfishness  as  this  Betty  Jensen  ?  I  doubt  it. 

And  the  life  of  her  husband  is  a  very  hard  and,  as  it 
seems  to  me,  a  very  thankless  one.  Strange  as  it  may 
seem,  Jensen  came  here  to  seek  his  fortune.  The  little 
money  that  he  had  saved  up  from  my  expedition  of  1860- 
'61,  enabled  him  to  return  to  Denmark,  and  there  to  mar- 
ry, and  come  back  to  Greenland  and  set  up  for  himself. 
He  had  been  promised  the  charge  of  this  remote  settle- 
ment of  Tessuisak,  which  is  fifty  miles  above  Upernavik, 
and  on  the  very  confines  of  the  great  ice-barrier.  He  was 
always  a  fine  shot,  an  active  man,  and  an  expert  hunter ; 
and  he  thought  by  coming  here  he  would  in  a  few  years 
accumulate  a  competency,  which  he  would  carry  back  to 
Denmark.  But  I  fancy  it  must  have  been  something  of 
his  restless  nature  besides  that  impelled  him  to  this  life. 


THE  LAST  WHITE  MAN.  305 

He  had  lived  several  years  in  Greenland  before  I  knew 
him,  and,  like  all  other  men  who  have  returned  to  the 
primitive  life  of  the  hunter,  he  never  again  took  kindly 
to  other  ways,  but  clung  lovingly  to  independence.  It 
is  not,  however,  so  with  women,  and  hence  to  them  the 
greater  hardship  and  privation.  Without  the  same  mo- 
tives to  action,  they  can  not  find  society  in  the  animals 
of  the  chase. 

Unhappily,  Jensen  had  overestimated  his  skill  and  the 
resources  of  Tessuisak,  and  in  spite  of  all  he  was  disap- 
pointed. The  whole  productions  of  the  place  per  annum 
do  not  exceed  five  thousand  dollars,  chiefly  made  up  from 
seal-oil,  eider-down,  and  bear  and  fox  skins.  On  this  Jen- 
sen receives  but  five  per  cent.,  a  salary  besides  of  five-and- 
twenty  dollars,  and  one  Government  ration.  There  is  no 
provision  for  his  wife  and  children.  Clearly  the  Royal 
Greenland  Fishing  Company  never  contemplated  such  a 
thing  as  a  wife  going  to  so  distant  and  woe-begone  a 
place. 

But  if  the  fact  of  Christian  people  selecting  this  remote, 
forlorn,  and  frigid  corner  of  the  world,  voluntarily,  for  a 
residence  is  incomprehensible  to  the  ordinary  understand- 
ing, the  pluck  of  the  thing  will  be  appreciated  by  all.  I 
know  of  nothing  that  would  require  a  greater  degree  of 
moral  courage  than  to  face  life  in  such  a  situation.  Yet 
Jensen  gloried  in  the  work  he  did,  and  grew  very  ani- 
mated when  he  recited  his  bear  and  reindeer  hunts,  the 
skill  and  success  he  had  in  the  seal  and  white-whale  fish- 
eries, and  boasted  of  his  good-luck  in  making  the  natives 
be  to  him,  what  no  other  Dane  had  succeeded  in  doing, 
"  hewers  of  wood  and  drawers  of  water ;"  or  rather,  to 
speak  practically,  as  we  must  of  a  region  where  there  is  no 
wood  to  hew,  and  where  all  the  water  used  is  made  from 
snow,  the  butchers  of  his  game,  and  the  drawers  of  his 


306  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

blubber.  In  a  small  way  he  is  a  sort  of  feudal  lord,  with 
natural  rights  and  privileges  which  I  doubt  if  he  would 
exchange  for  the  benefits  of  an  inferior  station  in  some  in- 
ferior latitude. 

The  population  which  he  thus  rules  comprises  sixty-two 
savage  souls,  scattered  about  in  huts  and  tents  upon  the 
rocky  hill-side.  The  dogs,  which  in  the  winter-time  are 
used  to  drag  the  sledges,  are  beyond  counting ;  and  the 
stench  that  arose  from  the  carcasses  of  decomposing  fish 
and  seals,  and  other  offensive  sources,  exceeds  belief.  I 
pitied  the  wife,  and  mentioned  it  to  Jensen.  "  Oh,  she's 
got  used  to  it,  and  don't  mind !"  One  of  the  native  fam- 
ilies had,  with  peculiar  impudence,  pitched  a  tent  close  be- 
side Jensen's  door,  and  he  told  me  that  it  could  not  be 
removed  without  giving  offense  to  the  whole  village. 
Barren  though  the  land,  the  Esquimaux,  with  laughable 
gravity,  proclaim  themselves  the  true  proprietors  of  the 
soil,  and  they  do  not  hesitate  to  tell  the  Danes — though 
not  in  hostile  fashion,  calling  them  foreigners — that  they 
are  intruders. 

What  made  the  presence  of  this  tent  the  more  obnox- 
ious was  that  the  wife  was  supposed  to  be  a  witch,  and 
often  made  night  hideous  with  her  devilish  incantations. 
Although  nominally  a  Christian  now,  she  can  not  yet  re- 
frain from  her  old  practices.  And  surely  if  ill  looks  had 
ever  any  thing  to  do,  as  they  always  seem  to  have  had, 
with  the  general  make-up  of  a  witch,  she  was  entitled  to 
be  looked  upon  as  the  mother  of  them  all,  for  a  more 
frightful-looking  being  surely  never  walked  in  darkness 
and  conspired  with  the  evil  one.  Yet  this  monster  had  a 
child,  and  its  innocent  baby  face  did  not  exhibit  any  evi- 
dence that  it  was  conscious  of  its  dangerous  parentage, 
but  it  sucked  its  fist  as  contentedly  as  any  other  baby  that 
had  been  born  all  right  and  in  the  mortal  fashion.  Her 


THE  LAST  WHITE  MAN. 


307 


AN   AKOTIO   WITCH. 


original  name  was  Annorasuak,  which  is  something  equiv- 
alent to  "  Mother  of  the  Winds."  Her  history,  as  I  had  it 
afterwards  from  Jensen,  is  not  without  romantic  interest, 
and  will  be  again  referred  to. 

I  could  not  part  from  this  little  family  of  Jensen  with- 
out emotion.  For  seven  long  years  the  wife  had  seen  no 
living  soul  from  the  great  world  from  which  her  love 
had  called  her,  and  the  children  looked  upon  us  with 
amazement.  They  had  never  seen  a  ship  in  all  their  little 


308  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

lives  before,  and  the  smoking,  snorting  Panther  was  a  won- 
der in  their  eyes.  We  made  them  up  a  store  of  such  good 
things  as  we  had  on  board,  including  every  thing  of  an 
antiscorbutic  character  that  we  could  lay  our  hands  upon, 
added  a  couple  of  tons  or  so  of  coals,  and  then,  with  Jen- 
sen on  board  to  pilot  us  through  the  intricate  passages 
between  the  islands,  we  bore  away  from  this  most  north- 
ern house  of  all  the  world,  and  shaped  our  course  for 
Upernavik 


THE  FIORD  OF  AUKPADLARTOK. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  FIORD  OF  AUKPADLARTOK. 

ON  our  way  to  Upernavik  we  wheeled  into  the  fiord  of 
Aukpadlartok,  to  which  I  have  hitherto  made  allusion, 
and  I  verily  believe  there  never  was  such  another  wilder- 
ness of  desolation — such  an  interminable  array  of  islands 
of  ice  and  islands  of  rock;  and  when  at  last  we  saw  an- 
other house  like  Jensen's,  pitched  like  his  upon  just  such 
another  point  of  land,  and  reflected  that  these  houses  are 
dotted  here  and  there  in  this  dreary  waste  at  intervals  of 
forty  and  fifty  miles,  and  that  their  inmates  hold  commu- 
nication one  with  the  other  perhaps  once  in  the  winter 
with  dog-sledge,  and  once  in  summer,  and  not  more,  with 
boat,  it  seemed  as  if  proof  was  positive  that  life  with- 
out social  intercourse  was  really  possible — a  fact  which  I 
should  never  have  believed  for  a  moment  otherwise. 

The  ice  was  so  thick  along  the  shore  that  we  could  not 
get  within  a  mile  of  the  little  house  and  the  miserable 
huts  which  surrounded  it.  So  we  had  nothing  to  do  but 
tie  up  to  an  iceberg,  and  take  to  a  boat  and  pull  in  as  best 
we  could.  The  shore  was  reached  at  last,  but  only  after 
we  had  passed  through  many  very  dangerous  places,  in- 
cluding a  hole  in  an  enormous  iceberg,  and  then  we  were 
landed  on  the  rocks,  where  we  were  met  by  the  most  re- 
nowned of  all  the  Greenland  hunters — a  blue-eyed  and 
fair-complexioned  and  most  "  mild-mannered  man,"  named 
Philip,  who  was  backed  up  by  a  staff  of  five  sons — Chris- 
tian, Wilhelm,  Simon,  Hans,  and  Lars;  while  still  farther 
in  the  rear  was  the  wife,  Caroline,  with  her  two  daughters, 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


\V"K    GO  THROUGH   AN   ICEBERG   TO   CALL   ON   PHILIP. 

Christina  and  Maria,  and  the  various  wives  and  sweet- 
hearts and  children  of  all  her  five  boys,  the  lover  of  Chris- 
tina, and  some  forty  other  savages  and  half-savages,  who 
constituted  the  promiscuous  population  of  the  village  of 
Kresarsoak — "the  village  beside  the  mountain;"  and  the 


THE  FIORD  OF  AUKPADLARTOK.  313 

mountain  reared  its  great  white  crest  five  thousand  feet 
above  our  heads,  pushing  itself  away  up  among  the 
clouds. 

The  family  of  Philip  was  a  very  different  one  from  that 
of  Jensen.  His  wife  was  a  full-blown  Esquimaux.  His 
half-breed  children  were  happy  and  well-contented,  and  re- 
joiced in  the  possession  of  every  thing  needful  for  the  hunt 
or  domestic  comfort.  Christian  was  married,  and  had  a 
small  hut  and  seven  children  all  to  himself.  Simon  ditto, 
but  he  lived  with  his  wife  and  baby  in  a  seal-skin  tent. 
Wilhelm  had  recently  been  in  trouble  about  his  lady-love, 
who  was  a  thorough-bred  native,  she  at  first  preferring 
another  fellow,  who  was  a  fine  hunter,  and  evidently  the 
superior  of  Wilhelm.  But  then  Wilhelm  was  the  son  of 
the  "governor,"  which  made  all  the  difference  in  the  world ; 
and  so  the  marriage  was  settled  upon,  and  was  to  take 
place  as  soon  as  the  priest  could  come  up  from  Upernavik 
to  bless  the  nuptials.  For  the  rest,  they  all  lived  in  the 
paternal  mansion,  which  had  but  one  room,  and  was  di- 
vided with  seal-skins  into  a  number  of  stalls  like  an  oys- 
ter-cellar, and  in  these  the  different  members  of  the  family 
retired  to  rest  among  their  bags  of  eider-down. 

Having  enjoyed  the  benefit  of  Philip's  hospitality,  which 
was  displayed  chiefly  in  the  form  of  seal-steaks,  smoked 
salmon,  and  coffee,  I  strolled  out  with  Jensen,  who  had  told 
me  that  near  by  once  dwelt  the  witch  Annorasuak,  who 
now  lived  at  Tessuisak,  and  had  become  a  Christian — that 
is  to  say,  after  the  Greenland  fashion.  I  accepted  with 
alacrity  his  offer  to  guide  me  thither. 

Crossing  the  neck  of  a  promontory,  in  half  an  hour  we 
came  down  into  a  valley,  or  rather  wide  gorge,  bounded 
on  either  side  by  lofty  cliffs,  that  were  broken  by  immense 
clefts,  which  had  a  most  glaring  and  forbidding  aspect  as 
they  frowned  down  upon  us  from  underneath  the  great 

O 


314  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

white  caps  that  untold  winters  had  woven  round  their 
heads.  Fitful  gusts  of  wind  came  moaning  down  the 
gorge,  chilling  us  to  the  very  bone. 

Our  situation  at  the  entrance  to  the  gorge  was  very 
striking  and  remarkable.  Looking  up  the  fiord,  we  could 
faintly  see  the  glacier  of  Aukpadlartok  over  the  tops  of 
innumerable  icebergs,  which  crowded  the  fiord,  and  upon 
which  the  sun,  breaking  through  the  clouds  that  had  ob- 
scured the  sky  for  some  hours  previous,  shone  with  great 
brilliancy,  without,  however,  reaching  us  or  giving  any 
warmth.  Looking  up  the  valley,  we  saw  the  front  of  a 
small  glacier,  perhaps  fifty  feet  high  and  two  hundred 
yards  over,  which  crossed  the  valley  from  cliff  to  cliff 
about  a  mile  up  from  the  sea,  and  from  which  was  gather- 
ed a  stream  of  limpid  water  that  came  rushing  down  over 
the  rocks,  breaking  in  falls  and  whirling  in  pools,  and  ev- 
erywhere hurrying  along  as  if  it  were  glad  to  get  its  free- 
dom again,  and  was  making  the  first  use  of  it  by  bounding 
away  to  the  sea  and  the  warm  sunshine. 

The  ascent  of  the  valley  was  difficult  and  laborious ;  but 
by  dint  of  hard  scrambling  we  succeeded  finally  in  making 
about  half  a  mile,  when  we  had  reached  a  point  where  the 
cliffs  rose  almost  perpendicularly  from  the  border  of  the 
stream,  and  were  scarcely  more  than  thirty  yards  apart. 
Between  them  the  water  rushed  in  a  series  of  picturesque 
falls,  the  sound  of  which,  added  to  the  roar  of  the  wind, 
that  seemed  as  if  it  had  accumulated  beyond,  and  was  be- 
ing forced  through  the  narrow  passage,  greatly  heightened 
the  gloomy  aspect  of  the  scene. 

Continuing  on  our  course,  we  finally  reached  the  summit 
of  the  falls,  and  came  then  upon  a  level  plain  of  consider- 
able extent — a  sort  of  natural  amphitheatre.  Here  in  this 
wild  and  desolate  place,  close  to  the  fall  and  beneath  the 
glacier,  Annorasuak  had,  many  years  ago,  chosen  her  res- 


THE  F10ED  OF  A  UKPADLARTOK.  315 

idence.  From  here  went  forth  her  decrees,  which  stilled 
the  winds  or  made  them  blow,  and  sent  good-fortune  to 
her  friends,  and  disaster  to  those  who  disregarded  her. 
The  heathen  natives  held  her  in  the  greatest  awe,  and 
were  glad  to  propitiate  her  with  the  offer  of  food,  clothing, 
and  every  thing  needful  for  her  comfort ;  and  even  those 
who  had  professed  to  embrace  the  Christian  religion  held 
her  in  superstitious  dread,  and  thought  it  no  harm  to  add 
a  contribution  to  the  witch's  wardrobe  and  larder.  The 
ruins  of  her  hut,  which  was  entered  through  a  long  and 
intricate  cleft  in  the  rock,  were  still  visible.  I  examined 
this  ruin,  and  heard  the  story  of  this  last  trace  of  the 
heathen  practices  in  Greenland,  with  intense  interest,  not 
alone  on  account  of  this  circumstance,  but  because  of  the 
peculiar  mystery  which  shrouded  her  history,  and  the  ro- 
mantic side  of  which  culminated  in  a  daughter  —  a  girl 
with  light  complexion  and  black  hair.  The  father  of  this 
girl  was  believed  to  be  a  criminal  who  had  escaped  from 
an  English  whale-ship,  fled  hither  with  this  woman,  and 
managed  while  he  lived  to  avoid  detection  through  her 
arts;  for  it  was  at  the  period  of  her  flight  there  that  she 
first  assumed  to  be  the  "  Mother  of  the  Winds."  From 
that  time  forth  no  native  was  ever  known  to  enter  the  val- 
ley, except  to  a  certain  spot,  where  he  left  his  offering ;  and 
even  the  Danes  seemed  to  have  a  superstitious  dread  of  it, 
associating  it  with  the  evil  one.  They  called  the  glacier 
hanging  above  the  witch's  home  "  The  Devil's  Castle,"  and 
the  valley  itself  borrowed  its  name  from  its  wicked  mis- 
tress. It  was  "  The  Valley  of  the  Winds."  The  daugh- 
ter's name  was  Amiore — "  Daughter  of  the  Winds  ;"  and 
she  had  been  really  taught  to  believe  that  she  was  born 
of  the  air. 

Love,  which  is  and  always  has  been  the  disturber  of  so 
many  human  devices,  finally  broke  up  this  nest  of  witch- 


316  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

craft  and  sorcery.  A  youthful  Dane,  named  Elsen,  saw 
the  child,  and  had  pity  for  her.  His  tenderness  soon  sug- 
gested means  by  which  to  approach  without  frightening 
her,  and  without  her  mother's  knowledge.  Then  he  fell 
in  love  with  his  wild  favorite,  and  addressed  the  mission 
of  Upernavik  for  help  to  save  her.  "  Poor  Annore,"  the 
lover  wrote,  in  his  despair  at  her  condition ;  "  she  is  a 
wild  flower  in  the  wilderness.  Can  the  wild  flower  be 
transplanted?  Will  the  lustre  of  the  leaves  come  out  in 
other  soil,  and  will  gentler  airs  bring  brightness  to  the 
blossom  ?  Poor  misguided  child  ! — her  birth  a  mystery 
to  her ;  her  very  name  a  falsehood  to  her  mind  perpetu- 
ally. And  yet  she  is  taught  to  honor  it,  and  taught  to 
think  with  pride  that  she  was  born  of  the  winds,  and  to 
the  winds  will  go  away  again,  to  wander  to  and  fro,  do- 
ing good  or  ill,  forever.  Annore,  poor  Aunore  !  Will  the 
falsehood  pass  away  ?  Will  the  daughter  of  the  winds 
become  a  child  of  God  ?" 

And  the  lover's  question  was  answered  favorably.  The 
missionary  became  interested,  and  the  two  together  man- 
aged, in  the  end,  to  entice  the  mother  and  daughter  away; 
and  through  their  efforts  Annore  became  Nina,  and  the 
wife  of  Elsen ;  and  Annorasuak,  her  mother,  became  Bar- 
bara, and  the  wife  of  a  Christian  native,  and  she  is  now 
the  ugly  hag  that  has  pitched  her  tent  at  Tessuisak,  right 
beneath  the  nose  of  Jensen,  who  hates  her  cordially. 

'  We  did  not  remain  longer  in  the  valley  than  was  neces- 
sary for  an  inspection  of  the  place.  The  wind  shortly  in- 
creased in  violence,  accompanied  with  occasional  gusts  of 
snow,  and  sometimes  it  fairly  shrieked  along  the  cliffs; 
and  it  seemed  clear  enough  that  if  there  ever  was  a  place 
on  earth  fitted  for  the  abode  of  evil  spirits,  this  was  it. 
As  if  to  increase  that  impression,  and  leave  no  doubt  at 
all  about  it,  an  ancient  raven,  with  a  ragged  coat,  flopped 


THE  FIORD  OF  AUKPADLARTOK. 


317 


down  near  by,  and  set  up  a  dismal  croak.  Then  he  walk- 
ed off  deliberately,  muttering  to  himself  the  while  in  a 
sepulchral  tone,  and,  mounting  to  the  ruined  wall  of  the 
witch's  hut,  he  croaked  again.  Then  he  cocked  his  head 
to  one  side,  and  looked  at  us  in  a  very  sinister  way  out  of 
one  eye  ;  after  which  he  went  to  the  edge  of  the  fall  and 
looked  over  into  the  foaming  abyss.  Then  he  croaked 
once  more,  flopped  himself  over  to  the  other  side  of  the 
stream,  and,  lighting  on  a  rock,  began  sharpening  his  bill, 
as  if  preparing  for  a  sacrifice,  croaking  all  the  while.  He 


TliE   BAVKJS. 


seemed  to  know  the  spot,  and  to  be  at  home  there,  for  the 
moment  he  struck  the  rock  I  perceived  there  was  a  double 
echo,  so  that  his  voice  resounded  from  cliff  to  cliff,  until 
it  seemed  as  if  the  air  were  peopled  with  spirits  that  were 
in  league  with  him,  and  were  answering  to  his  call. 

By  the  time  we  had  reached  Philip's  hut  it  was  snow- 
ing heavily,  and  it  being  clear  from  the  first  that  we  had 
come  up  the  fiord  for  nothing,  the  icebergs  being  so  thick 
above  as  to  defy  even  the  passage  of  a  boat  to  the  glacier, 
we  got  aboard  with  all  haste,  and  steamed  away. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER 

UPEBNAVIK. 

I  HAD  set  my  heart  upon  making  a  thorough  survey  of 
the  fiord  of  Aukpadlartok.  As  recorded  in  a  previous 
chapter,  I  had  previously  been  there  and  penetrated  to 
within  five  miles  of  the  glacier.  It  was,  therefore,  with 
much  regret  that  I  found  the  water  wholly  impassable  to 
a  boat.  Even  the  air  was  so  thick  that  I  could  not  see 
the  front  of  the  glacier,  so  that  I  failed  to  note  any 
changes  which  might  have  taken  place  in  the  interval  of 
eight  years  since  I  had  visited  it  before.  Philip  told  me, 
however,  that  during  the  past  two  or  three  years  the  dis- 
charge of  icebergs  had  been  much  greater  than  formerly, 
and  that  if  they  continued  to  increase  in  the  same  pro- 
portion he  would  be  obliged  to  quit  the  place,  as  he  could 
hardly  at  any  time  get  in  and  out  from  his  hut.  Indeed, 
his  residence  appeared  to  me  even  more  dreary  than  Jen- 
sen's, for  about  the  latter  the  icebergs  were  comparative- 
ly few,  while  Philip  was  thoroughly  encircled  by  them. 
What  measureless  powers  of  endurance  and  hardihood 
such  men  as  these  must  possess !  I  confess  that  I  never 
look  upon  them  except  with  astonishment. 

Our  voyage  to  Upernavik  was  without  incident  worthy 
of  note,  except  that  our  mate  was  blessed  with  his  usual  for- 
tune in  discovering  soundings.  In  a  place  where  a  rock 
was  never  before  known  to  exist,  he  found  one  which  by  a 
miracle  we  grazed  without  damage  to  the  Panther's  keel 
or  bottom. 

To  our  arrival  in  Upernavik  I  had  looked  forward  with 


UPERNAVIK.  319 

some  real  pleasure ;  and  not  the  least  among  those  which 
I  actually  found  was  a  civilized  bed,  and  other  homelike 
luxuries  which  Dr.  Rudolph  was  good  enough  to  place  at 
my  disposal.  And  oh  the  luxury  of  that  bed  after  eight 
weeks  in  the  narrow  quarters  of  a  ship's  bunk,  always 
damp,  and  black  with  coal-dust,  and  daily  rendered  worse 
by  the  unsuccessful  attempts  of  an  idiotic  cabin-boy  to  put 
it  to  rights  and  keep  it  clean ! 

The  window  of  my  room  opened  upon  the  sea,  and  was 
full  of  sweet  flowers  that  had  been  nurtured  tenderly  by 
my  good  hostess,  as  if  they  were  children.  It  was  strange 
to  look  out  through  a  little  wilderness  of  roses,  mignon- 
nette,  and  heliotrope,  upon  a  great  wilderness  of  icebergs. 
The  sea  was,  indeed,  as  cold  as  cold  could  be,  and  the 
waves  broke  fiercely  right  beneath  me  on  the  rocky  shore ; 
but  about  me  all  was  peace  and  quiet — the  pictures  on  the 
wall,  the  fire  in  the  stove,  the  home  comforts  of  the  mod- 
est house  which  sheltered  me — all  spoke  defiance  of  place 
or  climate,  and  told  a  tale  of  tranquillity  and  contentment 
that  was  worth  going  thrice  three  thousand  miles  to  see, 
even  though  the  storms  were  never  so  threatening,  and 
ice-barriers  without  number  intervened. 

We  remained  a  week  at  Upernavik,  and  during  that 
time  I  never  saw  the  Panther.  I  never  was  so  glad  not 
to  see  any  thing  in  all  my  life  before.  I  was  quite  willing 
to  believe  that  the  artists  were  painting  and  photograph- 
ing icebergs  without  limit,  and  were  getting  into  their 
camera  every  thing  from  a  native  to  a  mountain,  but  I  did 
not  want  to  see  it.  My  enjoyment  of  the  little  home  into 
which  I  had  fallen  was  too  fresh  to  court  disturbance.  To 
forget  for  a  time  that  there  was  ever  such  an  enemy  to 
man  as  a  ship's  cook,  and  to  partake  of  some  simple  fare 
with  which  a  woman's  hand  had  had  to  do,  was  too  great  a 
luxury  to  be  profaned,  and  I  lived  along  through  my  week 


320  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

at  Dr.  Rudolph's  in  a  state  of  bliss.  I  wrote,  and  read; 
and  played  with  the  children,  Anne  and  Christian.  I 
talked  with  Jensen  about  his  life,  and  the  Greenland  le- 
gends which  he  had  gathered  in  his  long  experience.  I 
helped  my  host,  the  governor,  to  make  up  his  annual  ac- 
counts for  the  next  ship  home ;  and  I  bungled  through  my 
Danish  with  his  amiable  wife,  making  her  laugh  continu- 
ally at  my  mistakes ;  and  altogether,  quite  free  from  care, 
gave  myself  up  wholly  to  enjoyment  for  the  seven  days. 

Now  the  coming  of  the  ship  was  a  matter  of  serious  con- 
cern to  Govornor  Rudolph.  The  store-rooms  were  very 
empty,  and  there  was  much  danger  of  famine  if  the  ship 
did  not  come  at  all.  To  the  governor's  family  there  would 
be  a  lack  of  every  luxury.  She  was  overdue  almost  a 
month,  and  great  alarm  was  in  the  settlement  already. 
But  she  did  come  at  last,  and  I  never  saw  people  more  re- 
joiced. The  ship  was  the  Constancies,  and  Captain  Bang, 
her  master,  was  as  intelligent  a  man  as  he  was  good  fel- 
low. He  spoke  capital  English,  and  helped  us  with  our 
pipes  and  punch  in  the  evening,  and  enjoyed  the  flowers 
as  much  as  I  did,  and  the  delightful  breakfast  of  smoked 
salmon,  venison  sausage,  and  pickled  halibut,  and  the  sub- 
stantial lunch,  and  the  late  dinners,  that  were  none  the 
worse  for  the  cigars  and  wine  and  Santa  Cruz  that  he 
brought  off  one  day  to  help  out  with  ;  for  the  doctor  was 
the  most  hospitable  of  all  old-fashioned  gentlemen ;  and 
having  three  times  dined  our  whole  huge  cabin  mess,  and 
opened  his  house  to  every  body  every  day,  his  supply  of 
cigars  and  liquors,  after  a  whole  year's  pulling  at  them  on 
his  own  part,  had  run  rather  low.  Our  mess  would  glad- 
ly have  replenished  the  doctor's  fast-failing  stock ;  but 
with  true  American  energy  we  had  gone  to  work  at  the 
start  as  if  to  get  through  with  what  supplies  we  had  in 
the  shortest  possible  space  of  time;  and  there  was  not 


UPERNA  V1K.  321 

now  among  us  so  much  as  a  single  "  Havana,"  or  even  a 
bottle  of  ale,  to  bless  ourselves  with. 

The  doctor  surprised  me  one  day  by  coming  into  my 
room,  and  in  his  genial  way  calling  out,  "  You  know  dis 
man  ;  you  know  dis  feller,  eh  ?"  producing  from  behind 
his  coat  a  rascally  face,  which  I  never  could  forget  in  any 
length  of  time.  It  was  the  face  of  Hans  Heindrich. 

Now  Hans  is  a  man  of  some  celebrity.  In  1853  Dr. 
Kane  took  him  from  Fiskernaes,  South  Greenland,  upon 
his  famous  voyage  into  Smith's  Sound.  His  age  then  was 
about  twenty  years ;  and  he  lived  well  on  board  the  brig 
Advance,  and  waxed  fat,  and  tricked  his  master,  from 
whom  he  finally  ran  away,  and  joined  the  Smith  Sound 
savages,  marrying  one  of  their  women,  by  name  Merkut. 
Among  these  people  I  found  him  in  1860,  and  took  him 
aboard  with  his  wife,  Merkut,  and  his  baby,  Pingasuk.  I 
ought  to  have  known  better.  He  tricked  me  worse  than 
he  had  tricked  Dr.  Kane.  I  am  fully  convinced  that  he 
was  instrumental  in  causing  the  death  of  two  of  my  com- 
mand, though  it  was  never  possible  to  prove  any  thing 
against  him  positive  enough  to  insure  conviction.  It  is 
hard  to  collect  evidence  where  there  are  no  eyes  to  see 
nor  ears  to  hear.  Being  unable  to  verify  my  suspicions, 
I  brought  him  back  in  1861,  and  delivered  him  over  to 
the  Danish  authorities,  from  whom  Dr.  Kane  had  taken 
him  eight  years  before.  Even  now  he  could  not  cease 
from  mischief,  breeding  quarrels  wherever  he  went ;  and 
his  wife  was  in  a  state  of  chronic  dissatisfaction  because 
she  could  not  live  in  her  old-fashioned  savage  way,  and 
her  children  (she  had  two  now)  were  a  burden  on  the 
poor-fund.  I  gave  Merkut  some  money  to  buy  clothes 
for  the  children,  and  within  an  hour  it  was  all  spent  at 
the  Government  store-house  for  figs  and  sugar-candy. 

The  untutored  savage  is  not  a  peculiarly  delicious  crea- 
O2 


'322 


THE  LAND  OF  DESOLATION. 


HANS  AND   HIS   FAMILY. 


ture  under  the  best  of  circumstances.  He  is  apt  to  have 
very  crude  notions  about  meum  and  tuum,  and  the  truth 
is  not  in  him.  Truth,  indeed,  seems  to  be,  like  gallantry,  a 
fine  art,  and  men  have  to  be  cultivated  to  the  understand- 
ing of  it.  But  Hans  was  not  altogether  an  untutored  sav- 


UPERNA  VIK.  323 

age,  for  the  missionaries  had  control  of  him  before  Dr. 
Kane  took  him  in  charge,  and  had  taught  him  to  read  the 
Testament  and  Thomas  a  Kempis,  and  to  sign  his  name. 
The  story  of  his  proficiency  in  these  respects  having  got 
abroad,  in  connection  with  supposed  services  rendered  to 
Dr.  Kane's  party  in  Christian  charity,  Hans  has  been 
made  much  of  in  a  Sunday-school  book  that  I  have  seen 
somewhere  within  a  year  or  so,  as  a  striking  example  of 
the  power  of  Christian  labor  among  the  heathen — just  as 
if  he  did  not  use  what  he  had  acquired  for  a  cloak  to  hide 
his  true  character,  something  after  the  manner  of  Uriah 
Heep  when  playing  a  part  before  the  pious  Creakle  and 
the  zealous  board  of  visitors. 

I  do  not  mean  to  be  understood  to  give  this  as  by  any 
means  a  fair  sample  of  the  influence  of  Christian  civiliza- 
tion upon  the  Greenlanders,  for  I  have  had  frequent  occa- 
sion to  testify  to  the  excellence  of  the  native  character  in 
many  conspicuous  instances.  Hans  is  nothing  more  than 
one  of  that  very  numerous  class  common  to  all  peoples. 
Even  the  pastor  of  the  little  church  at  Upernavik  can  do 
nothing  to  help  the  mischief-making  sinner;  for  the  read- 
er must  know  that  Upernavik  has  a  church.  It  was  here 
that  Mr.  Anthon,  now  at  Julianashaab,  performed  his  first 
missionary  labors.  The  pastor  of  this  Upernavik  flock 
surely  fills  Cowper's  description  of  the  Moravian  brethren, 
going  -forth, 

"Fired  with  a  zeal  peculiar  to  defy 
The  rage  and  rigor  of  a  Polar  sky ; 
And  plant  successfully  sweet  Saviour's  rose 
On  icy  plains,  and  in  eternal  snows." 

A  new  pastor,  accompanied  by  his  wife,  came  out  in  the 
Constancies  to  take  charge  of  the  mission.  They  were  a 
young  couple.  Certainly  no  one  would  charge  them  with 


324  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

undue  regard  to  things  earthly  when  they 'subject  them- 
selves to  such  banishment. 

Yet  one  might,  after  all,  be  worse  off  than  here  in 
Greenland ;  and,  for  a  certain  length  of  time,  I  think  the 
banishment  might  be  bearable  enough.  One  of  the  happi- 
est, best  contented,  and  most  cultivated  men  that  I  have 
ever  met,  did  not  live  much  south  of  this,  and  he  has  de- 
clared to  me  that  he  would  not  exchange  his  Greenland 
lodge  for  the  most  comfortable  quarters  in  his  own  fine 
city  of  Copenhagen.  And  it  does  seem  strange  that  such 
a  large  number  of  superior  men— superior  in  education 
and  refinement— find  their  way  to  this  inhospitable  region, 
as  governors,  missionaries,  and  physicians.  It  is  either  be- 
cause the  home  Government  is  particularly  careful  of  its 
agents,  or  that  the  region  possesses  some  peculiar  attrac- 
tion for  thoughtful  and  reflective  minds.  "  It  is,"  said  my 
friend  before  alluded  to,  "the  best  place  in  the  world  to 
read  books  in,"  and  great  readers  most  of  these  Danes  in 
Greenland  are. 

Dr.  Rudolph  is  a  fine  specimen  of  the  best  class  of 
Danish  gentlemen  who  accept  appointments  here,  and  who 
seem  to  take  root  and  never  desire  to  be  transplanted 
elsewhere. 

In  early  life  he  was  an  assistant  surgeon  in  the  Danish 
army.  Later,  he  was  largely  engaged  in  private  practice 
in  the  vicinity  of  Copenhagen.  His  health  failing  him,  he 
went  to  Greenland  as  physician  to  the  colony  of  Jacobs- 
havn,  and  thereby  saved  his  life ;  but  his  life  once  saved, 
he  had  no  mind  to  renew  the  humdrum  existence  of  pow- 
ders and  pills,  and  his  old  age  now  finds  him  both  govern- 
or and  physician  of  one  of  the  most  productive  of  the 
Greenland  Districts,  even  although  it  is  the  most  north- 
ern of  all  points  of  Christian  occupation.  His  children 
are  at  school  in  Copenhagen,  all  except  the  two  youngest, 


U PERN  A  VIK.  325 

who  are  now  with  him ;  and  there  seems  to  be  no  end  to 
his  plans  of  doing  for  them  out  of  his  percentage  of  the 
Upernavik  production,  which  furnishes  him  a  moderate  in- 
come. 

Judging  from  the  seeming  shortness  of  the  week  I  spent 
at  Dr.  Rudolph's  house,  I  should  say  a  winter  would  not 
be  tedious;  but  then  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  my 
week  was  a  continual  sunshine.  I  was  used  to  it  then,  as 
I  had  been  before,  and  did  not  observe  or  think  of  it ;  but 
now  to  look  back  over  the  time,  and  remember  a  week, 
and  weeks,  and  months  even,  passing  away  without  once 
lighting  a  lamp ;  to  take  a  walk  at  midnight  as  an  appe- 
tizer for  sleep,  just  before  going  to  bed,  and  do  it  in  the 
daylight;  to  watch  through  day  and  night  the  shadows 
going  round  and  round,  is  to  recall  a  now  strange  experi- 
ence. I  have,  indeed,  never  seen  a  person  with  the  least 
sentiment  who  has  ever  been  beyond  the  Arctic  Circle, 
whose  fancy  did  not  cling  lovingly  to  that  long,  lingering 
day  and  the  never-setting  sun. 

But  all  things  must  have  an  end,  and  so  at  length  I 
found  myself  once  more  back  in  my  damp  and  smoke-be- 
grimed quarters  in  the  Panther's  cabin.  On  the  same 
day  the  Constancies  was  ready  to  sail,  and  our  captain  of- 
fered Captain  Bang  a  tow.  He  was  going  down  the  coast 
forty  miles,  to  Proven,  where  he  was  to  take  in  more  car- 
go before  returning  home  to  Copenhagen.  But,  as  ill  luck 
would  have  it,  a  small  iceberg  had  drifted  into  the  middle 
of  the  harbor  and  grounded  right  in  front  of  the  two  ves- 
sels, which  lay  almost  side  by  side.  It  seemed  at  first  as 
if  we  were  both  fast  there,  but  the  Constancies  cable 
slipped  out  and  freed  the  ship,  while  ours  stubbornly  re- 
fused to  budge ;  so  that  we  had  the  mortification  of  see- 
ing the  vessel  we  were  going  to  tow  move  off  without  us 
under  oars,  It  was  a  most  aggravating  situation.  Doc- 


336  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

tor  Rudolph  was  on  board  the  Constancies,  on  his  way  to 
Proven.  He  cried  to  us  that  he  would  be  back  in  three 
days,  and  we  were  quite  welcome  to  the  harbor.  The 
captain  of  the  brig  offered  us  a  tow  if  we  would  only  pass 
along  a  line.  The  order  of  things  was  quite  reversed. 
The  steamer  was  helpless,  while  the  sailer  was  off. 

Our  captain,  vexed  by  the  detention  (and  these  taunts 
did  not  in  the  least  soothe  him),  was  evidently  coming  to 
a  desperate  determination.  "  Pay  out  chain,"  he  shout- 
ed from  the  bridge.  Then  he  rang  his  bell  to  "  back 
astern."  The  vessel  moved  away  from  the  berg  as  far 
as  the  chain  would  let  her  go,  and  then  he  rang  again, 
"Ahead  full  speed."  Down  the  Panther  came  with  a 
steady  helm,  and  with  her  iron  forefoot  she  took  the  ice- 
berg fairly  in  the  middle.  The  shock  was  terrific,  and 
there  was  a  great  scattering  of  men  on  the  deck  and  of 
plates  in  the  pantry;  but  fortunately  the  iceberg  at  that 
point  was  sloping,  and  the  Panther  slid  up  about  five  feet 
out  of  the  water,  which  partly  broke  the  force  of  the  blow. 
Then  she  slid  back  again,  luckily  with  her  masts  all  stand- 
ing. The  Constancies  people  cheered  us,  and  we  backed 
off  again  and  went  at  the  iceberg  once  more,  with  the 
same  result — we  did  not  budge  or  damage  it  in  any  way 
further  than  to  splinter  off  innumerable  fragments,  which 
covered  the  sea  all  around  us.  But  the  berg  was  thin  at 
the  centre  where  we  had  struck ;  and  the  captain,  growing 
more  and  more  determined,  backed  off  and  butted  away 
at  the  berg  again  and  again,  until,  finally,  the  sixth  effort 
proved  successful.  The  berg  split  with  a  fearful  sound. 
The  two  masses,  each  pivoted  on  the  bottom,  rolled  over 
with  a  great  swash;  the  Panther  sheered  ahead  between 
the  fragments,  and  then,  picking  up  our  anchor,  to  the  uni- 
versal astonishment  we  steamed  out  of  the  harbor  in  tri- 
umph, and  kept  our  promise  to  the  Constancies* 


UPERNAVIK.  327 

Dropping  the  Constancies  off  Proven,  we  continued 
south  through  the  night,  and  on  the  following  morning 
sighted  the  lofty  mountains  of  Disco  Island.  Passing  the 
Waigat,  and  the  great  stream  of  icebergs  which  emerges 
from  it,  we  kept  close  to  the  bold  and  picturesque  shores 
of  Disco,  and  on  the  following  day  dropped  anchor  in 
Godhavn,  close  beside  the  town  which  takes  its  name 
from  the  little  landlocked  bay. 


THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

DISCO  ISLAND. 

"A  ROCKY  islet  in  the  sea, 
A  lonely  harbor  on  its  lee, 

The  roaring  surf  around! 
Chill  are  the  winds  and  cold  the  sky, 
Dead  in  the  dells  the  flowers  lie, 

The  snow  is  on  the  ground! 

"A  desert  drear  as  e'er  was  seen; 
It  seems  as  if  there  has  not  been 

A  trace  of  human  life ! 
I  write  again.     Upon  the  rock 
I've  found  a  home,  a  loving  flock — 
A  husband,  child,  and  wife. 

"And  thus  it  is — here  Greenland  frowns, 
The  name  to  others  harshly  sounds; 

'Tis  everywhere  the  same! 
If  we  but  taste  the  sweets  of  love, 
It  matters  little — rock  or  grove — 

There's  nothing  in  a  name. 

"God  bless  that  home  upon  the  rock! 
God  bless  that  happy,  loving  flock, 
And  keep  them  from  all  harm! 
My  bark  again  bounds  o'er  the  sea; 
Away,  away  once  more  I  flee 
To  nothing  half  so  warm!" 

Our  Sagaman. 

Disco  Island  is  otie  of  the  most  notable  localities  in 
Greenland.  There  is  a  legend  that  a  mighty  sorcerer,  or 
angeikut,  dragged  the  island  there  from  the  south ;  and 
even  to  the  present  time  they  point  out  a  remarkable  hole 


DISCO  ISLAND.  329 

in  the  rock,  on  its  north  side,  through  which  the  evil  gen- 
ius of  the  island  rove  his  rope.  The  island  is  upwards 
of  a  hundred  miles  long,  is  everywhere  very  lofty,  and  pre- 
sents the  most  superb  lines  of  cliffs  of  trap  rock  that  I 
have  ever  seen.  On  the  south  side  of  the  island,  in  lati- 
tude 69°,  there  is  a  low  and  ragged  spur  of  granite  rock, 
near  a  mile  in  length,  which  incloses  as  perfect  a  little 
harbor  as  can  anywhere  be  found,  and  this  the  Danes 
have  expressed  in  the  name  Godhavn  (Good-harbor),  which 
they  have  given  it.  This  rocky  spur  is  a  peninsula  at  low 
water;  at  high  water  an  island.  On  the  north  side  of  it, 
facing  the  great  tall  trap  cliffs  which  tower  up  two  thou- 
sand feet  above  the  harbor,  stands  the  little  town  which 
takes  its  name  from  the  harbor,  though  better  known  by 
the  English  whalers'  name  of  Lievely,  which  is  probably 
a  corruption  of  lively,  for  the  town  is  the  metropolis  of 
North  Greenland ;  and,  having  been  a  general  rendezvous 
for  whale  and  discovery  ships  almost  from  the  beginning 
of  the  present  century,  its  metropolitan  gayety  has  be- 
come widely  celebrated. 

It  was  on  a  cold,  gray,  misty  morning  that  we  arrived 
at  Godhavn.  There  had  been  heavy  frosts  and  a  light 
spurt  of  snow ;  and  the  little  town  being  hidden  from 
view  in  the  gloomy  atmosphere,  it  is  not  surprising  that 
it  should  have  impressed  our  sagaman,  as  it  did  all  of  us, 
rather  unfavorably.  But  this  feeling  speedily  wore  off  af- 
ter we  had  landed  and  called  at  the  inspector's  house — a 
house  to  me  not  new,  for  there  I  had  in  former  years  spent 
many  pleasant  days  with  the  prior  incumbent,  Justits- 
raad  Olrik,  now  director  of  the  Greenland  Company  in  Co- 
penhagen. 

The  present  inspector  is  Herr  Krarup  Smith,  a  young 
man  of  perhaps  two-and-thirty,  who  possesses  the  same  en- 
thusiastic fondness  for  scientific  discovery  for  which  Mr. 


330  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

Olrik  was  distinguished,  and  the  same  cultivated  apprecia- 
tion of  its  importance ;  and  being  obliged  every  year  to 
visit  each  of  the  districts  and  subordinate  stations  within 
his  inspectorate,  he  has  made  many  valuable  observations, 
and  collected  many  rare  and  curious  specimens ;  among 
which  are  some  fossil  remains  of  the  limestone,  coal,  and 
slate  deposits  of  Disco  Island,  and  other  localities  of  Disco 
Bay.  This  bay  appears  to  have  been  a  great  carbonifer- 
ous basin,  coal  being  found  to  crop  out  on  almost  every 
side  of  it. 

The  inspector's  wife  seemed  to  be  quite  as  well  content 
with  her  Greenland  home  as  the  inspector  was  himself, 
and  there  never  was  a  happier  baby  than  the  Greenland- 
born  Elizabet,  whose  first  birthday  we  were  hospitably 
called  upon  to  assist  in  celebrating  immediately  after  our 
arrival. 

The  inspector's  house  is  not,  by  any  means,  an  impos- 
ing edifice,  being  of  the  usual  pitchy  hue ;  but  it  is  com- 
fortable, and  sufficiently  capacious.  The  suite  of  rooms 
— comprising  billiard-room,  dining-room,  and  parlor — into 
which  we  were  ushered  by  the  same  Sophy  who  had  pre- 
sided there  as  housekeeper  these  many*  years  past,  and 
who  wore  the  inevitable  silver  seal-skin  pantaloons  and 
dainty  snow-white  boots  as  of  old,  had  nothing  to  indicate 
that  we  were  three  degrees  north  of  the  Arctic  Circle. 
Some  prints  of  fruits  and  flowers  were  hanging  on  the  din- 
ing-room walls,  and  the  parlor  was  literally  strewn  with 
books  and  family  souvenirs,  and  also  music.  A  piano 
stood  in  one  corner,  and  bore  evidence  of  being  well  used. 
Bright  flowers  were  blooming  in  the  windows,  and  the 
faces  of  two  bright  young  ladies,  one  the  sister  of  the  in- 
spector, the  other  of  his  wife,  were  there,  as  if  on  purpose 
to  make  the  picture  quite  complete  and  leave  nothing  to 
be  wished  for. 


DISCO  ISLAND.  331 

These  young  ladies  were  on  a  visit,  having  come  out 
from  Denmark  the  previous  summer ;  and  now,  at  the  end 
of  the  year,  they  were  about  to  return  in  the  Hvalfisken, 
a  brig  which  came  into  the  harbor  soon  after  our  arrival. 
I  asked  how  they  liked  this  Greenland  life  ?  They  had  no 
fault  to  find  with  it  at  all,  except  the  ending  of  it.  They 
would  stay  another  year,  only  for  the  homes  across  the 
sea,  where  they  were  sadly  missed,  as  I  could  well  imagine  - 
they  must  be. 

Godhavn  is  not  so  lacking  in  life  as  most  of  the  other 
towns.  Here  all  the  Danish  ships  are  obliged  to  come  to 
receive  their  orders  from  the  inspector,  both  upon  their 
arrival  and  departure  from  the  Greenland  waters ;  and  of 
late  years,  during  the  search  for  Sir  John  Franklin,  here  is 
where  all  the  searchers  came  to  taste  the  first  sweets  of 
home,  after  a  long  imprisonment  in  the  inhospitable  re- 
gions around  Beechy  Island  and  elsewhere.  And  none  left 
without  carrying  away  the  most  lively  recollections  of  the 
place  and  of  the  genial  Justitsraad  Olrik;  nor  did  any 
body  ever  forget  the  Justitsraad's  housekeeper,  the  inim- 
itable Sophy. 

Godhavn  is  too  far  north  for  the  production  of  such  gar- 
den-luxuries as  we  found  at  Julianashaab  on  our  first  ar- 
rival in  the  country ;  yet  little  round  red  radishes  were 
not  wanting  any  more  now  than  they  had  been  when  Mr. 
Olrik  formerly  invited  me  to  his  table.  But  they  were 
grown  beneath  glass,  and  not  in  the  open  air,  the  earth 
being  brought  in  barrels  from  Copenhagen.  There  was 
also  a  head  of  lettuce,  reared  in  the  same  manner,  for  the 
perfection  of  the  very  excellent  luncheon  to  which  Mrs. 
Smith  invited  us  upon  our  first  appearance. 

As  Godhavn  is  the  most  pleasant  and  lively  of  all  the 
Greenland  towns,  so  Disco  Island  presents  the  most  pic- 
turesque and  attractive  scenery.  Looking  from  the  town 


332  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

across  the  harbor,  which  is  not  over  half  a  mile  wide,  you 
face  the  lofty  cliffs  of  trap  rock,  which  extend  to  right  and 
left  for  miles.  Above  they  are  capped  with  snow ;  below, 
the  waves  break  upon  them  fiercely,  and  the  icebergs  are 
ground  to  pieces  on  their  sharp  angles. 

I  walked  out  with  the  ladies  of  the  inspector's  family, 
and  had  a  fine  view  of  the  cliffs  from  behind  the  town ; 
thence  we  proceeded  across  the  narrow  neck  of  rocks 
around  the  head  of  the  harbor,  and,  after  strolling  along 
a  beautiful  sandy  beach  which  stretches  in  a  grand  curve 
for  a  mile,  we  entered  a  valley  beside  a  broad  and  rapid 
stream,  called  Rothe  River,  which  breaks  through  deep 
caverns  of  the  most  picturesque  description,  and  over  the 
tortured  rocks  dashes  in  falls  of  rare  beauty.  I  can  not 
imagine  any  thing  more  wild  than  the  scene  before  us  at 
the  summit  of  the  principal  fall.  Looking  up  the  valley, 
I  could  trace  the  winding  stream  to  an  immense  glacier 
that  descended  from  the  lofty  hills.  Directly  abreast  of 
these,  to  the  left,  was  another  glacier,  which,  having  poured 
down  over  a  very  steep  and  rugged  declivity,  was  twisted 
into  the  most  fantastic  shapes.  Above  towered  the  grand 
crest  of  Lyngmarkens  Fjeld,  over  which  snow-clouds  were 
sweeping  before  a  wind  that  did  not  reach  us  in  our  shel- 
tered situation.  The  air  in  the  valley  was  calm,  and  the 
day  was  unusually  warm  for  the  time  of  year.  The  light 
snow  that  had  fallen  three  days  before,  and  which  gave 
such  a  gloomy  aspect  to  the  land  upon  our  first  arrival  in 
Godhavn,  had  now  disappeared,  and  there  was  still  some- 
thing of  the  summer  green  which  had  clothed  the  valley. 
Even  bright  flowers,  though  wilted  by  the  frost,  and 
drooping  languidly,  were  there,  yet  they  seemed  to  be 
pleading  mournfully  for  life. 

One  must  come  to  these  Arctic  wilds  to  perfect  his  love 
and  reverence  for  these  sweet  gifts  of  nature.  They  seem 


DISCO  ISLAND.  333 

to  be  clothed  here  with  a  new  significance — an  intelli- 
gence of  their  own,  which  warns  them  that  their  life  must 
needs  be  short,  and  that  they  must  quickly  prepare  for 
their  end,  and  provide  speedily  for  their  posterity.  From 
the  time  when  "  lingering  winter  chills  the  lap  of  spring  " 
to  that  when  the  very  slight  warmth  which  the  summer 
has  given  to  the  earth  has  been  dissipated  by  the  return- 
ing frosts — between  the  deep  snows  of  those  two  periods — 
there  occurs  a  remarkable  series  of  transformations.  The 
snow  has  scarcely  disappeared  before  the  seed  swells  into 
life ;  and  in  a  few  days  green  supplants  the  universal 
whiteness.  Blossoms  gay  and  smiling  burst  forth  with 
corresponding  rapidity;  the  new  seeds  are  formed,  and 
fall  to  be  covered  with  their  winter  cloak;  and  from  the 
beginning  to  the  end  there  is  scarcely  an  interval  of  six 
weeks.  One  can  not  look  upon  this  astonishing  growth 
— flowering,  seeding,  and  decay — and  witness  this  adapta- 
tion of  life  to  the  conditions  of  climate,  without  wonder. 
Alfieri  has  beautifully  expressed  the  feeling  in  these  lines : 

"Oh,  'tis  the  touch  of  fairy  hand 
That  wakes  the  spring  of  Northern  land. 
It  warms  not  there  by  slofo  degrees, 
With  changeful  pulse,  the  uncertain  breeze; 
But  sudden  on  the  wondering  sight 
Bursts  forth  the  beam  of  living  light, 
And  instant  verdure  springs  around, 
And  magic  flowers  bedeck  the  ground." 

The  Governor  of  Godhavn,  Mr.  Frederick  Hansen,  whom 
I  had  before  met  at  Proven  and  Upernavik  in  a  similar 
capacity,  was  of  our  party  ;  and,  being  himself  a  famous 
walker,  it  was  proposed  that  we  should  attempt  to  scale 
the  glacier  to  our  left,  and  climb  to  the  summit  of  the 
Lyngmarkens  Fjeld— a  feat  which  had  never  been  per- 
formed. The  great  white  rolling  plain  that  stretched 


334  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

away  so  high  above  us  was  indeed  tempting;  and  none 
of  us  were  more  eager  to  make  the  trial  than  the  ladies 
themselves.  Mr.  Hansen,  who  had  climbed  every  thing 
that  it  seemed  possible  to  climb,  was  of  opinion  that  the 
thing  could  not  be  done ;  and  the  first  suggestion  of  the 
effort  appeared,  in  fact,  more  like  a  jest  than  sober  earnest. 
It  came  from  one  of  the  ladies,  however,  and  gallantry  alone 
was  of  itself  sufficient  to  prompt  a  ready  response.  We 
would  climb  the  glacier,  certainly,  if  the  ladies,  who  were 
"both  young  and  fair,"  were  so  minded — of  course  we 
would ;  but  it  must  be  confessed  that  there  were  doubt- 
ing eyes  cast  upon  the  Lyngmarkens  Fjeld. 

It  being  agreed  that  the  effort  was  to  be  made,  we  re- 
turned to  the  village  and  had  a  game  of  billiards  at  the 
inspector's  house.  On  the  following  day,  in  company  with 
the  "Professor,"  the  "Prince,"  the  "Colonel,"  the  "Ma- 
jor," and  our  chief  "  Nimrod,"  I  made  a  preliminary  ex- 
ploration. After  ascending  the  valley  to  the  falls,  we  pur- 
sued our  course  along  the  bank  of  a  stream  which  tears 
down  through  a  cleft  in  the  solid  rock  about  two  hundred 
feet  deep,  and  came  finally  to  the  glacier,  by  the  side  of 
which,  sometimes  on  the  ice  and  sometimes  on  the  rocks, 
through  the  gorge  formed  by  the  ice-stream  meeting  the 
base  of  the  cliffs,  we  climbed  to  an  altitude  of  eighteen 
hundred  feet  above  the  sea.  The  ascent  was  very  diffi- 
cult. The  ice  was  here  broken  up  in  the  most  wonderful 
manner.  The  lines  of  stratification  showed  a  great  variety 
of  curves,  especially  in  one  place  where  it  had  poured  over 
a  cliff,  as  if  it  had  been  a  tenacious,  plastic,  semifluid  mass 
flowing  down  by  force  of  gravity,  and  moulding  itself  in 
conformity  with  the  changing  bed  over  which  it  had  de- 
scended. 

The  ridge  of  sand  and  rock  that  had  been  ploughed  up 
in  front  measured  one  hundred  and  twenty  feet  in  alti- 


DISCO  ISLAND.  335 

tude.  By  watching  it  carefully  we  could  see  and  hear  it 
moving.  A  great  boulder,  losing  its  balance,  rolled  from 
the  crest  above,  and,  loosening  a  great  quantity  of  stones, 
mud,  and  sand,  came  rolling  down  near  where  we  stood, 
making  a  fearful  uproar.  At  the  same  moment  the  tall 
cliff  above  us  let  loose  some  immense  fragments,  which, 
bursting  in  pieces  like  bomb-shells,  bounded  down  the 
steep  slope  at  its  base ;  and  the  two  avalanches,  meeting 
in  the  gorge,  changed  their  direction,  and  went  crashing 
down  to  the  valley  at  a  fearful  rate,  directly  over  the 
track  which  we  had  pursued  in  coming  up.  Had  this  oc- 
curred a  few  minutes  sooner  we  should  have  been  over- 
whelmed ;  for  not  only  were  enormous  rocks  zigzaging 
their  way  along  with  increasing  violence  and  velocity, 
but  the  air  was  filled  with  lesser  fragments,  which  flew 
almost  with  the  speed  of  lightning. 

This  catastrophe  impelled  us  the  more  earnestly  to  con- 
tinue the  ascent,  and  to  find,  either  along  the  base  of,  or 
over  the  Lyngmarkens  Fjeld,  a  new  way  to  Godhavn,  But 
our  efforts  proved  unavailing.  The  ice-cliffs  could  not  be 
scaled,  and  there  was  nothing  left  for  us  but  to  take  the 
back  track,  which  we  did  with  fear  and  trembling.  For- 
tunately, there  were  no  more  avalanches  to  disturb  us,  and 
we  arrived  on  board  the  Panther  with  nothing  worse  than 
great  fatigue  and  a  thorough  drenching ;  for  while  we 
were  upon  the  ice,  to  add  still  further  to  the  discomfort 
of  our  situation,  a  heavy  shower  of  rain,  sleet,  and  snow 
set  upon  us. 

The  report  of  our  failure  to  find  a  passage  to  the  sum- 
mit of  the  mountain  did  not  at  all  discourage  the  cour- 
ageous ladies ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  only  inspired  them 
with  greater  eagerness.  Even  the  story  of  the  fearful 
avalanche  did  not  cool  their  adventurous  ardor,  nor  the 
doleful  account  of  the  cold  storm  dampen  their  zeal.  It 


336  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 

was  resolved  to  make  the  attempt  by  the  great  cliffs 
across  the  harbor. 

The  cliffs  are  there  cut  through  by  the  most  sublime 
gorges  that  eye  ever  looked  upon.  These  gorges  appear- 
ed, however,  to  be  as  inaccessible  as  the  valleys  of  the 
moon. 

Mr.  Hansen  laughed  at  the  idea.  "  Impossible !"  said 
he.  "  These  brave  ladies  will  climb  with  any  body,  as  I 
know  well  enough,  after  a  year's  practice  with  them,  but 
neither  they  nor  you  can  go  up  that  way." 

But  the  matter  of  the  trial  could  not  be  settled  at  once, 
as  the  next  day  promised  a  storm  like  that  of  the  day  be- 
fore ;  so  I  gladly  availed  myself  of  Mr.  Hansen's  obliging 
offer  to  lead  me  to  other  fields  of  investigation,  and  for 
three  days  thereafter  I  was  well  employed. 

Mr.  Hansen  communicated  to  me  many  interesting  facts, 
and  through  his  instrumentality  and  that  of  the  inspector 
I  was  enabled  to  visit  the  coal-fields,  which  are  here  very 
extensive. 

I  found  Mr.  Hansen  to  be  an  enthusiastic  naturalist. 
Among  other  valuable  specimens  which  I  owed  to  his 
kindness  was  a  large  collection  of  birds'  eggs  and  skins, 
and  some  fossils.  To  the  study  of  the  birds  of  the  region 
and  their  habits  he  has  devoted  much  attention.  The 
great  auk,  long  since  supposed  to  be  entirely  extinct,  he 
told  me  had  been  recently  seen  on  one  of  the  Whale-fish 
islands.  Two  years  before  one  had  been  actually  captured 
by  a  native,  who,  being  very  hungry,  and  wholly  ignorant 
of  the  great  value  of  the  prize  he  had  secured,  proceeded 
at  once  to  eat  it,  much  to  the  disgust  of  Mr.  Hansen,  who 
did  not  learn  of  it  until  too  late  to  come  to  the  rescue. 
How  little  the  poor  savage  thought  of  the  great  fortune 
he  had  just  missed  by  hastily  indulging  his  appetite  ! 

The  great  auk  is  not  the  only  mysterious  creature  in 


DISCO  ISLAND. 


337 


Greenland  that  seems  likely  soon  to  become  entirely  ex- 
tinct, for  there  is,  besides,  the  fierce  and  powerful  amarok, 
which  has  been  in  latter  times  rarely  seen,  and  is  much 
dreaded.  It  is  the  national  terror  of  the  nursery;  and 
children  are  frightened  to  sleep  or  kept  at  home  with 


threats  of  calling  the  awful  monster,  whose  rapacity  is  so 
great  that  he  can  take  off  any  number  of  Esquimaux  ba- 
bies that  you  choose  to  name.  This  animal,  which  is  an 
enormous  wolf,  is  not,  however,  quite  as  fabulous  as  the 
old  wives'  stories  would  incline  you  to  believe,  one  having 
actually  appeared  in  the  country  within  a  few  years,  and, 


338  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

after  committing  the  most  fearful  ravages  among  the  dogs, 
and  terrifying  the  people,  was  finally  shot.  His  skin  now 
adorns  the  Copenhagen  Museum.  The  story  has  spread 
everywhere,  and  is  related  by  every  body  with  the  same 
zest  that  a  frontiersman  would  tell  of  an  Indian  raid. 

Disco  Bay,  which  separates  the  island  from  the  main- 
land, is  sixty  miles  wide,  and  is  a  splendid  sheet  of  water. 
Several  glaciers  pour  their  frozen  floods  into  it,  and  grand 
processions  of  icebergs  stretch  over  it  towards  the  outlets 
above  and  below  the  island.  One  of  these  glaciers  is  ex- 
ceptionally fine.  It  is  known  as  the  Jacobshavn  Glacier, 
or,  as  the  Danes  call  it,  Jacobshavn's  Eis-strom ;  and  this, 
since  we  could  not  at  present  climb  the  hills  of  Disco  Isl- 
and, we  resolved  to  visit.  Its  name  is  derived  from  a  lit- 
tle town  near  by,  and  for  this  little  town  we  steamed 
away  in  the  early  morning,  while  the  sun  was  silvering 
the  mountain  crests  and  melting  away  the  chilly  mists  of 
the  night. 


JACOBSHAVN. 


CHAPTER  X. 

JACOBSHAVN. 

THE  view  of  the  southern  shore  of  Disco  Island  as  we 
crossed  the  bay  was  truly  magnificent.  The  gnarled 
shore,  full  of  clefts  and  caverns,  was  white  with  the  foam 
of  the  sea;  the  great  tall  cliffs  were  red  with  the  glowing 
sun ;  the  distant  hills  were  bathed  in  purple,  and  long 
streaks  of  bright  yellow  sandstone,  marking  the  coal- 
measures,  broke  in  here  and  there  to  complete  a  picture 
which  will  be  remembered  long.  The  icebergs,  too,  were 
more  than  ordinarily  beautiful.  There  are  few  places 
along  the  Greenland  coast  from  which  such  large  icebergs 
are  discharged  as  Disco  Bay.  We  stopped  frequently  to 
photograph  them,  and  thus  dawdled  away  the  hours,  so 
that  we  did  not  arrive  at  our  destination  until  nightfall, 
for  it  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  there  was  a  night  now — 
the  midnight  sun  having  left  us  many  days  before,  dark- 
ness coming  on  as  soon  as  ten  o'clock. 

One  of  the  icebergs  that  particularly  attracted  our  at- 
tention had  almost  the  perfect  shape  of  a  truncated  cone. 
But  its  chief  peculiarity  was  an  immense  arch  running 
directly  through  the  centre  of  it,  which  was  apparently 
large  enough  for  our  ship  to  pass  through,  since  it  could 
not  have  been  less  than  a  hundred  feet  high  and  seventy 
feet  wide.  It  would  have  been  a  very  hazardous  experi- 
ment to  have  undertaken  to  steam  through  the  berg  ;  but 
it  would  have  been  so  novel  a  thing  to  have  done,  that  I 
believe  the  consideration  only  of  the  berg's  liability  to 
fall  to  pieces  about  us  restrained  every  body  from  asking 


340  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

the  captain  to  do  the  thing.  This  remarkable  hole  had 
been  once  a  portion  of  a  great  natural  culvert  through 
the  glacier  into  which  the  waters  from  the  surface  found 
their  way  and  drained  off  to  the  sea. 

We  carried  along  with  us  from  Godhavn  a  native  pilot ; 
but  owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  hour,  and  the  great  num- 
bers of  icebergs  that  lay  about  the  mouth  of  the  harbor, 
it  was  found  to  be  impracticable  for  him  to  get  us  to  the 
town  before  daylight,  so  he  tied  to  some  grounded  ice. 
We  managed,  however,  to  penetrate  to  the  harbor  with  a 
boat,  and  surprised  the  governor  with  an  evening  call. 

Never  had  steamship  been  there  before,  and  of  course 
every  body  was  given  a  new  life  by  our  arrival.  Some  of 
the  governor's  family  had  retired  to  bed ;  but  our  coming 
had  quickly  roused  them,  and  every  possible  thing  was  done 
to  give  us  welcome.  The  governor,  or  colonibestyrere, 
Herr  Knud  Fleicher,  was  personally  known  to  me  before, 
he  having  been  at  Upernavik  in  that  capacity  in  1853  and 
1855.  I  was  much  surprised  to  find  him  there,  and  the  sur- 
prise was  not  the  less  agreeable  when  he  brought  into  the 
room  a  pretty,  modest,  and  intelligent  young  lady  of  nine- 
teen, whom  he  introduced  as  his  daughter,  saying  to  me, 
"  Know  you  dis  one  ?  She  comes  to  tank  you."  For  what 
I  could  not  at  first  understand ;  but  when  she  brought  in 
a  mechanical  contrivance  which  bore  unmistakable  evi- 
dence of  having  been  devised  impromptu,  I  recognized  my 
own  handiwork  of  sixteen  years  before,  and  in  the  young 
lady  a  deformed  child,  whom  I  had  the  great  satisfaction 
of  seeing  now  able  to  walk  as  well  as  any  body  upon 
legs  apparently  perfectly  straight  and  sound — a  circum- 
stance which  gave  me  not  less  surprise  than  pleasure  ;  for 
when  I  had  constructed  the  instrument  for  the  helpless  lit- 
tle girl  of  three  years,  there  appeared  to  be  but  a  small 
chance  for  her  ever  being  any  thing  but  a  cripple  for  life. 


JACOBSHAVN.  341 

She  was  followed  into  the  room  by  her  mother,  who  was 
a  fine  matronly-looking  lady,  and  very  neatly  dressed  in 
some  dark  stuff  sprinkled  with  snow-white  spots,  and  look- 
ing as  fresh  as  ever.  Three  lusty  sons  came  in  also ;  so 
did  the  parson  and  the  doctor,  with  their  respective  wives; 
and  altogether  the  reception  was  a  lively  and  agreeable 
one.  The  governor  produced  cigars,  long  Dutch  pipes,  and 
tobacco;  a  seal- skin  betrowsered  half-breed  girl  brought 
in  a  huge  waiter  with  an  urn  of  steaming  coffee ;  and  like- 
wise hot  water,  sugar,  rum,  and  sherry  for  the  inevitable 
Danish  punch. 

The  Prince  was  of  course  around,  and  was  not  long  in 
getting  the  girls  together ;  when  he  improvised  a  dance 
upon  the  green  in  front  of  the  governor's  house,  which 
proved  to  be  quite  a  picturesque  affair,  the  more  especial- 
ly as  the  scene  was  lit  up  with  lanterns  stuck  about  on 
the  rocks  around;  while  above  an  aurora  flashed  across 
the  heavens  in  the  wildest  manner,  emitting  tongues  of 
flickering  light  of  every  hue,  and  throwing  a  weird  bright- 
ness upon  the  sterile  rocks,  and  ice,  and  snow,  as  well  as  on 
the  gay  and  festive  merry-makers.  Nor  were  we  inside 
the  house  without  some  lively  entertainment.  The  govern- 
or's daughter  treated  us  to  some  music  on  a  piano,  which, 
although  not  in  the  best  of  tune,  was  yet  played  with  con- 
siderable skill ;  and,  considering  that  music  teacher?  do 
not  abound  in  Greenland,  the  success  of  this  young  lady, 
who  had  never  been  south  of  the  Arctic  Circle,  was  quite 
remarkable.  Then  we  had  some  songs  of  the  viva  la  vo 
order,  and  the  great  Danish  national  air  of  1848,  Den  tap- 
per Landsoldat  (The  Bold  Soldier-boy),  with  immense  ef- 
fect; after  which  we  went  on  board  to  sleep,  with  the 
"derfor  viljeg  slaaes"  and  the  "hurrah!"  and  the  rest  of 
it  ringing  in  our  ears  in  a  delightful  manner. 

On  the  following  day  we  tried  very  hard  to  get  to  the 


343  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

Jacobshavn  glacier,  first  by  the  fiord,  then  overland,  with- 
out, however,  accomplishing  our  purpose.  The  fiord  was 
so  crowded  with  icebergs  that  no  headway  could  be  made 
even  with  the  smallest  boat,  and  it  was,  in  fact,  as  much 
as  one's  life  was  worth  even  to  make  the  attempt ;  and  the 
overland  journey  was  found  to  involve  too  much  time  and 
labor  to  be  undertaken  at  so  advanced  a  stage  of  the  sum- 
mer— at -least  thus  thought  the  party  generally,  and  that 
settled  the  matter.  So  it  was  resolved  to  go  at  once  back 
to  Godhavn.  But,  before  doing  this,  we  dined  the  entire 
white  population  of  Jacobshavn  on  board  the  Panther, 
and  I  made  two  visits  in  the  morning  that  gave  me  great 
satisfaction. 

The  first  was  to  the  missionary,  whom  I  found  to  be  one 
of  those  kind  and  gentle  men  with  whom  one  would  nat- 
urally associate  the  idea  of  the  peculiar  unselfishness  need- 
ed in  a  missionary.  Certainly,  at  least,  if  he  had  not  a 
very  unselfish  nature  he  would  not  have  been  there.  As 
it  was,  he  seemed  to  be  exactly  the  right  man  in  the  right 
place ;  and  since  he  appeared  to  have  plenty  to  do,  and  to 
do  it  with  a  will,  I  was  glad  that  "  his  lines  had  fallen  in 
such  pleasant  places."  But  not  so  his  wife.  What  on 
earth  was  there  for  her  to  do  in  this  land  of  desolation? 
nothing,  as  I  could  see,  but  grow  sick  as  she  had  done,  and 
shudder,  as  she  must  have  done,  when  she  looked  out  upon 
the  dreary  church-yard  beneath  her  chamber  window. 
Jacobshavn  is  one  of  the  oldest  of  the  missions  in  North 
Greenland,  and  contains,  in  connection  with  the  church, 
a  seminary  for  the  education  of  the  native  youth  who 
seek  such  instruction  as  may  qualify  them  for  teachers  of 
their  own  people;  for  the  missionaries  have  given  to  the 
natives  a  written  language,  which  they  never  had  before ; 
and  it  is  rare  to  find  a  man  or  woman  who  can  not  read 
and  write.  Until  the  Christian  missions  were  established, 


JACOBSHAVN.  343 

the  language  of  the  people  was  only  oral ;  and  they  did 
not  possess,  even  in  the  crudest  form,  any  means  of  con- 
veying the  most  simple  idea  except  by  word  of  mouth. 
The  "picture-writing"  of  our  North  American  Indians 
was  unknown  to  them.  They  have  now  at  Godthaab  a 
printing-press,  established  there  by  Dr.  Rink;  and  not 
only  have  they  printed  many  interesting  historical  ac- 
counts and  native  traditions,  but  have  illustrated  them 
with  wood-cuts  of  native  manufacture  that  are  quite  as 
creditable  as  specimens  of  art  as  those  which  illustrate  the 
travels  of  Mandeville,  and  similar  works  of  our  own  lan- 
guage published  a  few  centuries  ago. 

In  fact,  these  Esquimaux  possess  remarkable  ingenuity. 
Even  in  their  savage  state  their  inventions  are  very  cred- 
itable ;  a  fact  that  was  well  proven  during  my  second  call 
in  Jacobshavn,  which  was  upon  the  surgeon  of  the  dis- 
trict, Dr.  C.  G.  F.  Pfaff,  in  whom  I  had  the  good  luck  to 
discover  an  enthusiastic  antiquarian.  His  opportunities 
have  been  great,  and  he  has  employed  them  well  in  gath- 
ering a  very  valuable  collection  of  implements  of  ancient 
native  manufacture,  of  which  he  had  several  hundred  spec- 
imens— embracing  knives,  pots,  lamps,  axes,  spear-heads, 
needles,  drills,  ice-hooks,  etc. — all  made  of  stone,  and  all  of 
superior  workmanship.  The  knives  were  very  sharp;  so 
also  were  the  needles  and  drills;  and,  being  made  of  chal- 
cedony and  other  like  minerals,  it  seemed  very  wonderful 
how  they  had  managed  to  grind  them  down  to  sharp 
points  and  edges,  and  to  polish  them  as  if  they  had  possess- 
ed all  the  appliances  of  the  most  skilled  mechanics,  with 
all  the  modern  inventions.  I  have  not  seen  anywhere  so 
fine  a  private  collection  illustrative  of  the  "  Stone  Age "  . 
of  man's  existence.  This  Stone  Age  of  the  Esquimaux, 
however,  instead  of  having  ended  in  a  period  of  remote 
antiquity,  comes  down  to  the  time  when  Fulton  was  in- 


344  THE  LAND   OF  DESOLATION. 

venting  steamboats.  The  spear-heads  were  mostly  of  red 
cornelian,  and  these,  as  well  as  the  other  implements,  were 
generally  polished,  and  in  every  respect  showed  a  skill  su- 
perior to  that  of  the  North  American  Indians.  The  doc- 
tor was  good  enough  to  present  me  with  a  few  samples 
of  this  native  art ;  but  the  main  collection  he  reserves  for 
the  Museum  in  Copenhagen,  of  which  every  Dane  is  so 
justly  proud. 

Jacobshavn,  like  all  the  other  Greenland  colonies,  owes 
what  prosperity  it  has  mainly  to  the  seal-fishery.  Besides 
the  seal  there  is  the  white  whale,  which  arrives  in  its  an- 
nual migration  from  the  North  about  the  middle  of  Sep- 
tember. A  great  many  halibut  are  likewise  caught  and 
preserved.  This  latter  is  of  a  variety  peculiar  to  Jacob- 
shavn, being  caught  there  upon  a  bank  of  limestone, 
deposited  from  the  water  which  comes  from  under  the 
glacier. 

It  was  a  matter  of  much  regret  to  me  that  that  glacier 
could  not  be  reached — the  more  so  that  it  had,  two  years 
before,  been  visited  by  Mr.  Whymper,  who  had  conceived 
the  idea  of  travelling  over  it  to  the  interior  of  Greenland, 
a  feat  which  I  believe  to  be  impracticable  on  at  least  any 
of  the  known  glaciers  of  the  South.  My  own  journey  of 
eighty  miles  inland  at  the  remote  North  was  the  only  suc- 
cessful effort  of  the  kind  that  has  ever  been  made ;  but 
this  was  in  a  region  where  the  ice,  owing  to  the  conforma- 
tion of  the  land, is  exceptionally  smooth.  Greenland  might 
perhaps  be  crossed  in  that  quarter,  though  the  undertaking 
would  be  an  exceedingly  hazardous  one.  No  food  could, 
in  my  opinion,  be  obtained  by  the  way,  as  I  entertain  no 
doubt  that  the  whole  interior  of  the  country  is  but  one 
vast  sea  of  ice.  It  is  only  on  the  outer  land  that  the 
snow  melts  and  flows  to  the  sea.  While  upon  this  sub- 
ject, it  is  not  inappropriate  to  mention  that  to  Dr.  Rink 


JACOBSHAVN.  345 

we  owe  most  that  we  have  known  hitherto  of  the  Green- 
land glaciers,  and  I  believe  he  was  the  first  explorer  who 
pointed  out  the  origin  of  icebergs. 

Jacobshavn  needs  no  description  further  than  to  say  that 
it  is  but  a  repetition  of  the  other  towns  we  had  visited. 
It  is,  however,  somewhat  larger,  and  has  a  better  climate 
than  Godhavn,  as  was  shown  by  the  fact,  if  by  nothing 
else,  that  we  found  upon  our  cabin  table,  when  we  were 
ready  to  sail,  a  small  basketful  of  round  red  radishes, 
which  the  Fraulein  Fleicher  had  raised  in  the  open  air, 
and  obligingly  sent  off  to  us  as  a  parting  gift.  In  return 
we  sent  her  some  American  table  luxuries,  considering 
ourselves  greatly  the  gainers  by  the  exchange;  for  not 
only  were  these  Arctic  radishes  delicious  in  themselves, 
but  they  were  a  great  surprise  to  us,  grown  as  they  had 
been  in  latitude  69°,  and  in  the  very  shadow  almost  of  a 
frowning  and  formidable  glacier. 

Of  this  glacier  I  had  a  fine  view,  just  before  leaving, 
in  the  afternoon.  Climbing  a  lofty  hill  in  company  with 
the  captain,  I  overlooked  the  fiord,  and  traced  its  winding 
course  through  thirty  miles.  The  icebergs  that  had  been 
detached  and  floated  in  the  fiord  must  have  numbered 
thousands ;  and  as  they  moved  along  with  the  current,  or 
touched  the  bottom,  they  were  grinding  against  each  oth- 
er continually,  and  the  air  was  filled  with  the  ceaseless 
sounds  of  the  avalanche  tumbling  from  their  sides.  A 
grand  scene  of  this  description  occurred  near  the  mouth 
of  the  fiord.  As  we  were  about  coming  away,  an  iceberg 
of  large  dimensions  went  almost  literally  to  pieces,  first 
rolling  nearly  over,  and  then  breaking  up  as  it  rocked 
from  side  to  side.  Others  in  the  neighborhood  became 
likewise  disturbed ;  and  as  crash  after  crash  followed  each 
other  in  quick  succession,  the  peals  that  rang  along  the 
cliffs  from  crag  to  crag  were  loud  and  piercing.  Upon 

P2 


346 


THE  LAXU   OF  DESOLATION. 


ICEBERG  IN  JACOBSUAVN  FIOED. 


reaching  the  town,  we  found  the  people  in  a  state  of  con- 
sternation. The  disturbance  of  the  ice  which  we  had 
witnessed  from  the  hill-top  had  been  the  cause  of  great 
waves  setting  out  of  the  fiord;  and,  although  the  harbor 
of  Jacobshavn  was  two  or  three  miles  distant,  and  is  per- 
fectly land-locked,  yet  the  swell  reached  there,  and  the 
surf  washed  far  up  on  the  shore,  greatly  endangering  the 
lives  of  some  hunters  who  were  in  the  act  of  landing  from 


JACOBSHAVN.  347 

their  kayaks.  I  was  told  that  fearful  catastrophes  some- 
times happen  from  this  cause.  Even  when  we  reached 
there  the  water  was  still  in  motion ;  the  ship  was  sway- 
ing to  and  fro,  and  the  ice  all  over  the  harbor  was  snap- 
ping and  crackling  in  a  very  spiteful  and  fiendish  sort  of 
way.  When  the  disturbance  had  subsided  so  that  a  boat 
could  come  to  land,  we  went  aboard,  and,  after  cautiously 
steaming  among  the  icebergs  at  the  mouth  of  the  harbor, 
we  headed  for  Disco  Island,  carrying  with  us  pleasant 
recollections  of  Jacobshavn  ;  and  all  feeling  abundantly 
rewarded,  save  and  except,  perhaps,  the  trader,  who  found 
nothing  to  buy  but  a  pin-cushion. 


348  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

A  WEEK  IN  GODHAVN. 

WE  returned  to  Godhavn  on  the  10th  of  September, 
and  for  a  week  thereafter  travelled  about  the  Island  of 
Disco  as  we  found  opportunity  and  inclination.  To  the 
geologist,  as  previously  intimated,  Disco  presents  a  most 
interesting  field  of  study,  and  the  professor  was  accord- 
ingly busy  all  the  while,  pursuing  his  researches  with 
characteristic  enthusiasm.  The  artists  were  constantly  at 
work  with  camera  and  pencil.  In  this,  the  metropolis  of 
Greenland,  it  was  not  difficult  for  the  pleasure-seekers  to 
find  opportunity  to  amuse  themselves;  and  the  captain 
whiled  away  the  time  by  tearing  to  pieces  the  wreck  of  a 
whale-ship  which  had  been  run  aground  at  the  mouth  of 
the  harbor,  as  rumor  had  it,  in  order  to  secure  insurance 
money.  If  such  was  the  case,  her  people  certainly  took 
good  care  to  insure  their  own  lives,  for  the  vessel  was 
within  sight  of  the  town  on  a  sandy  beach,  where  the  sea 
never  breaks,  and  full  a  quarter  of  a  mile  out  of  the  chan- 
nel. The  people  were  sent  home  in  the  Danish  ships,  and 
if  they  obtained  their  insurance  they  surely  did  not  get 
their  deserts. 

To  Governor  Hansen  I  was  again  indebted  for  aid  in 
such  investigations  as  I  desired  to  make — especially  in 
relation  to  the  coal-fields,  which  are  chiefly  interesting  be- 
cause of  their  being  so  far  north.  Vast  quantities  of  veg- 
etable matter  were  deposited  here  in  a  remote  geological 
epoch,  which  goes  to  show  that  Greenland  would  once 
have  deserved  its  name  had  human  beings  existed  there 


A    WEEK  IN   6ODHAVN.  349 

to  give  it  the  one  which  is  now  as  absurdly  inappropriate 
as  Achilles  to  an  organ-grinder.  I  was  enabled  to  obtain 
a  good  collection  of  specimens,  many  of  which  I  owed  to 
the  politeness  of  Inspector  Smith,  and  among  others  of 
particular  interest,  a  fragment  of  a  cone  of  an  evergreen, 
that  had  ripened  here  in  the  era  of  the  lower  miocene  of 
Europe.  In  relation  to  these  coal  deposits  of  Greenland, 
Professor  Oswald  Kerr  has  made  many  important  discov- 
eries, and  from  his  able  report  I  make  the  following  ex- 
tract : 

"Among  the  most  interesting  specimens"  [collected  by 
himself]  "  were  the  flowers  and  fruit  of  a  chestnut — the  lat- 
ter, however,  in  a  very  imperfect  condition.  The  discovery 
of  these  proves  that  the  deposits  in  which  they  are  found 
were  formed  at  different  seasons — in  spring  as  well  as  in 
summer.  The  known  miocene  plants  of  Greenland  have 
now  reached  the  number  of  137  species;  and  those  of  the 
Arctic  miocene  flora  altogether  number  194  species.  Of 
the  Greenland  species  46,  or  exactly  one-third,  agree  with 
those  of  the  miocene  deposits  of  Europe.  The  determina- 
tion of  the  age  of  the  beds  as  lower  miocene  has  been  ac- 
cordingly ascertained." 

These  coal-measures  of  Greenland  are  not  confined  to 
Disco  Island.  Extensive  veins  crop  out  as  well  on  the 
main-land.  On  the  north  side  of  the  Waigat  coal  is  found 
in  abundance,  and  also  around  the  margin  of  the  Great 
Omenak  Fiord.  This  latter  is,  with  the  exception  of  Mel- 
ville Bay,  the  most  thickly  studded  with  icebergs  and  gla- 
ciers of  any  part  of  the  Greenland  coast,  and  while  view- 
ing them  it  seems  strange  to  behold  in  immediate  proxim- 
ity great  black  streaks  of  carboniferous  deposits,  suggest- 
ive of  a  former  condition  of  life  and  heat  instead  of  cold. 

I  had  the  more  occasion  to  feel  indebted  to  Mr.  Hansen 
for  his  assistance,  that  he  was  busily  engaged  with  prepara- 


350  THE  LAND    OF  DESOLATION, 

tions  for  returning  to  Copenhagen,  with  his  wife  and  their 
little  son  Fred,  a  bright  Greenland-born  boy  of  four  years. 
I  found  him  well  posted  in  the  doings  of  naturalists.  He 
even  knew  that  there  was  a  "  Central  Park  Museum ;"  and 
at  his  request  I  took  charge  of  a  present  he  desired  to 
make  them — a  commission  which  was  duly  executed,  and 
politely  acknowledged.  I  likewise  did  the  same  with  the 
Smithsonian  Institute,  with  a  like  result.  Among  those 
that  went  to  the  latter  was  a  pair  of  gyrfalcon  skins,  which 
Mr.  Han  sen  sent  more  than  fifty  miles  to  get  for  me.  He 
was  equally  generous  with  his  collection  of  native  curiosi- 
ties, and  to  a  member  of  the  party,  who  valued  such  things 
more  than  objects  of  natural  history,  he  freely  offered  al- 
most every  thing  he  had ;  and  I  much  fear  there  were  a 
good  many  friends  disappointed  in  Copenhagen  that  win- 
ter when  the  governor's  empty  boxes  were  exposed.  This 
generosity  was  the  greater  that  such  articles  have  a  com- 
mercial value  at  home. 

TJie  event  of  our  week's  stay  in  Godhavn,  however,  was 
the  ascent  of  the  cliffs  facing  the  town,  to  the  summit  of 
Lyngmarkens  Fjeld.  Mr.  Hansen  could  not  accompany 
us  on  account  of  pressing  business;  and,  in  fact,  he  had 
no  faith  whatever  in  the  success  of  the  undertaking.  Our 
party,  when  made  up,  consisted  of  the  two  young  ladies 
mentioned  in  a  previous  chapter;  the  inspector  and  his 
secretary ;  and  half  a  dozen  adventurers  from  the  Panther, 
including  of  course,  the  captain  and  the  Prince.  Armed 
each  with  a  pocketful  of  lunch,  we  sallied  forth  at  nine 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  crossing  the  bay  under  as 
bright  a  sun  as  ever  shone,  in  a  most  delicious  autumnal 
atmosphere,  we  landed  on  a  broad  green  slope,  which  we 
ascended  to  the  base  of  the  first  crest  or  ridge  of  trap  rock, 
where  we  paused  to  rest. 
.  Up  to  this  point  we  had  followed  the  bank  of  a  stream, 


A  WEEK  IN  QODHAVN.  351 

which  was  now  seen  to  break  through  a  cleft  of  immense 
depth,  and  tumbling  then  in  a  beautiful  fall,  came  out  from 
beneath  a  great  cloud  of  spray  in  a  rushing  torrent  of 
white  foam.  This  ridge  descends  gradually  towards  the 
sea  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  and  then  spreading  out, 
presents  a  wide  plain,  which  the  action  of  the  weather  has 
left  in  a  most  singular  condition.  The  softer  rock  has  been 
worn  away,  while  the  more  solid  parts  remain ;  and  for  a 
mile  the  aspect  of  the  surface  resembles  a  clearing  dotted 
over  with  stumps.  Some  of  the  forms  are  quite  remarka- 
ble :  one  about  twenty  feet  high,  bears  the  name  of  "Lot's 
wife."  gtaoolt  Libra? 

After  crossing  this  ridge  the  real  labors  of  the  day  be- 
gan, for  we  came  then  to  the  great  slope  of  naked  rocks 
which  had  fallen  from  the  cliffs,  that  now  towered  above 
our  heads  until  they  seemed  to  touch  the  sky. 

Of  all  the  climbing  ever  done  by  "  ladies  fair,"  I  think 
nothing  ever  could  have  excelled  the  performances  of  our 
very  agreeable  companions  on  that  rocky  slope.  The 
stones  were  sharp,  the  footing  was  insecure,  and  the  whole 
foundation  on  which  we  stood  seemed  liable  to  give  way 
and  send  us  all  rolling  down  to  the  black  gorges  beneath, 
in  the  midst  of  a  fearful  avalanche.  To  look  down  made 
one  fairly  giddy ;  to  look  up  made  one  tremble ;  and  yet 
the  ladies  held  firmly  to  their  purpose,  and  were  always 
the  last  to  pause  for  breath,  and  the  first  to  say, "  Shall  we 
go  on  again  ?"  Their  courage  never  flagged,  as  on  and  on, 
over  the  rugged  stones  and  through  the  ugly  gorges,  we 
made  our  way,  steadily  nearing  the  Lyngmarkens  Fjeld, 
which  human  foot  had  thus  far  never  trod.  It  was  not 
the  height  of  it  that  made  the  climb  such  a  serious  mat- 
ter— it  was  the  great  roughness  of  the  track.  Several 
times  stones  gave  way,  and  feet  and  legs  were  jammed, 
skinned,  and  bruised ;  twice  a  general  slide  was  threat- 


352  THE  LAM>    OF  DESOLATION. 

ened  ;  but  only  once  was  there  very  serious  alarm.  Then 
two  of  the  party  had  imprudently  clambered  on  ahead,  and 
loosened  some  rocks  which  went  bounding  past  us,  whirling 
away  down  into  a  cloud  of  vapor  which  rose  out  of  a  deep 
cleft  from  the  foot  of  a  water-fall.  One  rock  seemed  to  be 
making  directly  for  our  fair  comrades,  who  were  then  rest- 
ing, quite  unconscious  of  harm ;  but  this  the  gallant  cap- 
tain, who  was  following  up  the  two  who  were  in  advance, 
was  quick  and  bold  enough  to  intercept  by  throwing  him- 
self upon  it  bodily. 

Over  this  rocky  debris  we  climbed,  how  far  I  can  not 
tell,  though  probably  for  about  two  miles ;  and  then  we 
stood  at  the  base  of  the  cliffs,  and,  by  barometric  meas- 
urement, 1500  feet  above  the  sea.  Here  a  cleft  opened  be- 
fore us,  which  we  entered,  and  between  lofty  walls  of  dark 
reddish-brown  rocks,  and  beside  the  stream  we  had  before 
followed  to  the  falls,  we  ascended  by  a  less  difficult  and 
dangerous  route,  until  we  reached  the  permanent  snow, 
where  the  stream  itself  originated.  This  was  1700  feet 
above  the  sea.  Here  we  rested,  lunched,  quenched  our 
thirst,  and  then,  upon  the  soft  snow  we  mounted  up  to  the 
glacier,  250  feet  higher.  The  glacier  only  here  and  there 
showed  its  icy  character,  and,  presenting  but  few  crevas- 
ses, we  found  little  difficulty  in  getting  above  the  cliffs, 
and  at  length  to  the  summit  of  the  f  jeld — a  word  which 
quite  expresses  its  character,  for  nothing  could  be  more 
desolate  and  barren  than  the  great  plain  of  whiteness  on 
which  we  stood.  We  were  then  3016  feet  above  the  sea, 
and  the  view  which  burst  upon  us  at  that  lofty  height 
was  extremely  fine.  The  air  being  perfectly  clear,  except 
at  one  point  away  below  us,  where  some  light  mist  was 
trailing  along  the  cliffs,  we  could  see  certainly  at  least 
eighty  or  ninety  miles.  Overlooking  the  village  to  the 
south,  we  saw  the  Crown  Prince  Islands,  twenty  miles 


A  WEEK  IN  GODHAVN.  353 

away,  sharply  defined  like  dark  specks  upon  a  silvered 
surface.  Beyond  them,  still  with  the  silver  setting  all 
round,  were  the  Hunde  Islands ;  and  the  lofty  coasts  and 
hills  of  Bunkee  Land,  in  the  neighborhood  of  Egedes- 
minde,  rose  farther  in  the  distance,  but  still  far  within  the 
bounds  of  vision.  Looking  east,  over  the  top  of  the  Great 
Skarve  Fjeld,  the  mountains  of  Jacobshavn  pierced  the 
sky  with  their  snowy  crests,  and  all  around  in  that  quar- 
ter through  an  arc  of  seventy  degrees  the  vast  plain  of 
the  mer  de  glace  appeared  beyond  the  mightiest  peaks, 
and  melted  against  the  sky  in  a  pearly  line  of  light.  Be- 
hind us  were  the  icy  peaks  and  snowy  plains  of  Disco. 
But  the  most  novel  exhibition  was  on  the  sea.  Thou- 
sands of  icebergs  were  scattered  over  the  bay  in  all  direc- 
tions, presenting  the  most  diverse  shapes.  Near  by  they 
were  few  in  number,  and  widely  distributed ;  but  they 
multiplied  rapidly,  and  their  track  became  more  concen- 
trated towards  Jacobshavn,  until  beneath  the  dark  laud 
they  melted  into  each  other  and  were  lost  to  view  be- 
tween the  walls  of  the  great  fiord.  And  yet  in  the  scene 
before  us  this  immense  glacier  of  Jacobshavn  was  but 
a  white  streak,  and  the  mammoth  icebergs  but  pigmy 
specks. 

We  spent  about  an  hour  in  this  novel  situation,  wan- 
dering about  over  the  white  snow,  which  (the  tempera- 
ture being  three  degrees  above  freezing)  was  quite  soft, 
though  in  places  a  firm  crust  had  formed.  We  saw  no 
true  ice  there,  and,  not  being  provided  with  any  imple- 
ments for  digging,  we  could  not  ascertain  at  what  depth 
the  ice  forms ;  nor  were  there  any  crevasses  to  embarrass 
us  until  we  attempted  to  explore  a  way  back  by  the  Rothe 
River  valley,  where  we  were  speedily  interrupted.  There 
was  nothing  left  for  us,  therefore,  but  to  return  by  the 
way  we  had  come,  after  the  fashion  of  that  famous  French 


354  THE  LANJJ   OF  DESOLATION. 

army  which  marched  up  the  hill  and  then  marched  down 
again.  And  the  results  of  our  labors  were  of  quite  as  lit- 
tle importance  to  the  world;  but  we  had  gratified  a  not 
unreasonable  curiosity,  and  enjoyed  an  adventurous  expe- 
rience of  a  very  unusual  character. 

Our  opportunities  for  a  demonstration  were  rather  mea- 
gre. We  did  not  have  an  American  flag  to  float  and  sa- 
lute; but,  out  of  compliment  to  the  ladies  and  to  their 
country,  which  owns  the  mountain,  we  improvised  a  Dan- 
ish one,  using  a  red  kandkerchief  for  a  groundwork  and 
two  white  ones  for  the  cross.  This  being  unfurled  to  the 
breeze  and  lustily  cheered,  we  set  out  on  our  return  jour- 
ney, which,  not  having  now  the  stimulus  of  ambition  and 
curiosity  to  spur  us  on,  was  even  more  tedious,  and  seem- 
ed more  wearisome  than  the  ascent.  At  the  gorge  by  the 
water-fall  we  were  met  by  a  messenger  from  the  inspect- 
or's wife,  with  a  hamper  containing  some  refreshments, 
which  were  most  eagerly  devoured.  They  were,  indeed,  a 
timely  gift.  The  thoughtful  lady  had  watched  the  mount- 
ain-side with  a  telescope,  and  when  we  came  in  sight  she 
graciously  contrived  this  agreeable  surprise  for  us. 

It  was  eight  o'clock  when  we  reached  the  inspector's 
house,  having  been  just  eleven  hours  on  the  march.  The 
sun  had  passed  around  behind  the  island,  and  the  dark 
shadow  of  the  cliffs  was  on  the  town ;  but  above  arose  the 
great  spotless  crown  of  Lyngmarken,  all  radiant  in  the 
gold  and  purple  light  that  burst  up  from  the  north. 

The  following  day  was  a  lively  one  in  Godhavn.  The 
Constancies,  with  Captain  Bang,  our  friend  of  some  days 
back,  was  there  now ;  and  both  he  and  Captain  Saxtorph 
of  the  HvalfisTcen  were  eager,  as  were  we  also,  to  be  on 
the  way  out  of  the  region  of  icebergs  before  the  nights 
grew  any  darker;  but  the  Constancia  had  to  remain  for 
the  last  dispatches  home  from  the  inspector.  We  were, 


A  WEEK  IN  GODHAVN.  355 

however,  ready,  and  offered  to  tow  the  Hvalfisken  out  to 
sea,  which  offer  being  accepted,  every  preparation  was 
made  for  leaving  early  the  next  morning.  The  passen- 
gers took  up  their  quarters  on  board  the  brig ;  but,  re- 
turning ashore  in  the  evening,  we  had  another  pleasant 
entertainment  at  the  inspector's  hospitable  house,  the  en- 
joyment of  which  was  only  broken  by  the  knowledge  that 
it  was  to  be  the  last.  I  could  but  think,  too,  how  lonely 
must  be  the  inspector's  wife  on  the  morrow,  with  her  two 
sisters  gone  away,  and  with  not  another  white  woman 
there  to  keep  her  company ;  for  the  new  governor  was  a 
bachelor,  and  there  was  neither  priest  nor  doctor  in  the 
place  to  bring  wives  there,  even  if  they  would. 

There  was  even  no  one  of  her  own  sex  with  whom  she 
could  converse  in  the  Danish  language,  except  the  half- 
breed  Sophy,  or  Sophia  Tabita,  as  she  was  universally 
known  in  all  North  Greenland — and  even,  she  was  going 
away ;  for  at  last  the  little  love-god  had  found  his  way 
through  the  hitherto  impenetrable  barriers  of  her  heart, 
and  in  a  month  or  so  she  was  to  marry  the  Colonibestyrere 
of  Christianshavn,  and,  resigning  the  proud  place  of  belle 
of  Disco,  would  henceforth  be  buried  in  obscurity  among 
the  icebergs  of  Jacobshavn  Fiord,  where  no  ship  ever 
comes  by  any  chance,  except  the  one  ship  of  the  year,  and 
where  none  of  the  merry  times  of  good  old  Lievely  will 
ever  return  to  enliven  her  new  home. 

The  bright  rays  of  the  morning  sun  had  just  fallen  upon 
the  little  town  when  we  dipped  our  flag  to  the  royal  en- 
sign which  waved  over  the  governor's  house,  cheered  the 
inspector,  and  steamed  away  with  the  Hvalfisken.  As  we 
rounded  the  outer  horn  of  the  harbor  I  saw  the  inspector 
and  his  wife  mount  to  the  look-out  station,  where  they 
stood  watching  the  brig  that  followed  us,  and  waving 
adieus  to  their  sisters,  from  whom  dangerous  seas  were 


356  THE  LANU   OF  DESOLATION. 

sure  to  separate  them  for  many  a  long  year,  and  perhaps 
forever. 

At  length  the  island  disappeared  against  the  cliff,  and 
we  saw  them  no  more;  then  the  cliffs  sank  down — the 
Great  Lyngmarken  became  a  speck  of  brightness  on  the 
waste  of  waters ;  then  it  too  was  lost ;  and  this  "  Land  of 
Desolation,"  around  which  will  always  cling  pleasant  mem- 
ories of  hospitable  people,  unusual  adventures,  and  a  prof- 
itably spent  summer,  fades  away,  and  an  experience  the 
like  of  which  might  be  had  by  many  at  small  cost  and  lit- 
tle risk,  takes  its  place  among  the  "  departed  joys." 

We  have  still,  however,  one  Greenland  token  left  with 
us,  and  that  we  propose  to  leave  behind  us  too,  for  dark 
clouds  are  rising  in  the  sky,  and  a  dirty  night  is  coming 
on  ;  besides,  an  ugly  sea  is  getting  up,  and  the  Hvalfiskerfs 
hawser  is  in  danger. 

"  Brig  ahoy  !"  roars  out  the  captain. 

A  head  appears  above  the  bulwarks,  and  an  answering 
"  Ay,  ay,"  comes  across  the  water. 

"  Stand  by — we  are  going  to  cast  you  off." 

"  Stop,  stop  a  bit,"  cries  the  sagaman. 

"  What  for  ?"  the  captain  asks. 

"You  shall  see;"  and  sure  enough  we  do,  for  he  whips  a 
scrap  of  paper  from  his  pocket,  on  which  something  is  writ- 
ten ;  he  hands  it  round ;  we  sign  it,  one  and  all ;  the  cap- 
tain puts  it  in  a  bottle,  which  he  corks  tightly,  and,  along 
with  another  bottle  of  more  portly  size,  labelled  "  Reserve 
L.  G.  L.,"  he  puts  it  in  a  tin  box,  which  Mick  ties  to  the 
hawser  and  lets  fall  into  the  sea.  We  hear  a  lively  cry 
on  board  the  brig  as  they  haul  in  the  line ;  we  see  a  sailor 
find  the  box  and  take  it  aft ;  and  we  know,  presently,  that 
the  paper  is  deciphered,  and  our  pledges  responded  to,  by 
the  appearance  of  heads  above  the  quarter-rail,  the  flutter- 
ing of  handkerchiefs,  and  the  unmistakable  appearance  of 


A   WEEK  IN  G  ODHA  VN.  357 

glasses  raised  at  arm's  length,  all  of  which  evidences  of 
hilarity  will  be  best  understood  by  repeating  the  round 
robin  our  sagarnan  had  written,  and  we  had  sent  through 
the  sea  as  our  final  adieu  to  "  The  Land  of  Desolation." 
Thus  it  ran : 

"We  drop  you  a  line,  and  we  bid  you  adieu! 
Now  fill  up  your  glasses  and  pledges  renew, 
In  this  wine  of  the  South — this  foaming  Champagne  1 
The  Lady  of  Disco — that  right  queenly  Dane, 
With  whom  we  have  left  (let  the  wine  freely  flow), 
Our  hearts  and  bright  wishes  and  prayers  also. 

"May  the  bleak  Norland  winter — that  night  of  despair — 
Leave  the  bloom  in  her  cheek  and  the  gold  in  her  hair, 
And  the  light  in  her  eye,  as  bright  as  the  blue 
Of  the  sky  in  the  summer,  the  clouds  breaking  through. 
Those  round  her  she  loves,  may  the  storms,  sweeping  wild, 
Pass  over  them  gently — the  father  and  child. 

"A  bumper!     The  ladies  in  Hvalfiskens  brig; 
Another !     Her  captain,  that  sailor  so  trig : 
To  the  governor  too,  his  frau  and  his  Fred ; 
To  all  a  good-night  on  their  wave-rocked  bed; 
To  the  brig  a  good  voyage.     Hip!  hip!  and  hurra! 
The  last  cup  is  drained,  and — there's  no  more  to  say." 


THE   END. 


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DIXON'S  FREE  RUSSIA.  Free  Russia.  By  W.  HEPWOETII  DIXON,  Author 
of  "Her  Majesty's  Tower,"  &c.  With  Two  Illustrations.  Crown  8vo, 
Cloth,  $2  00. 

DU  CHAILLU'S  AFRICA.  Explorations  and  Adventures  in  Equatorial 
Africa ;  with  Accounts  of  the  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  People,  and 
of  the  Chase  of  the  Gorilla,  the  Crocodile,  Leopard,  Elephant,  Hippopot- 
amus, and  other  Animals.  By  PAUL  B.  Du  CHAILLU,  Corresponding 
Member  of  the  American  Ethnological  Society,  of  the  Geographical  and 
Statistical  Society  of  New  York,  and  of  the  Boston  Society  of  Natural 
History.  With  numerous  Illustrations.  Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

DU  CHAILLU'S  "ASHANGO  LAND.  A  Journey  to  Ashango  Land,  and 
Further  Penetration  into  Equatorial  Africa.  By  PAUL  B.  Du  CHAILLTT. 
New  Edition.  Handsomely  Illustrated.  Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

ALCOCK'S  JAPAN.  The  Capital  of  the  Tycoon:  a  Narrative  of  a  Three 
Years'  Residence  in  Japan.  By  Sir  RUTHERFOBD  ALOOOK,  K.C.B.,  Her 
Majesty's  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  Minister  Plenipotentiary  in  Japan. 
With  Maps  and  Engravings.  2  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

ANDERSSON'S  OKAVANGO  RIVER.  The  Okavango  River:  a  Narrative 
of  Travel,  Exploration,  and  Adventure.  By  CHABLES  JOHN  ANDEBSSON. 
With  Steel  Portrait  of  the  Author,  numerous  Woodcuts,  and  a  Map 
showing  the  Regions  explored  by  Andersson,  Cumming,  Livingstone, 
and  Du  Chaillu.  Svo,  Cloth,  $3  25. 

ANDERSSON'S  LAKE  NGAMI.  Lake  Ngami ;  or,  Explorations  and  Dis- 
coveries during  Four  Years'  Wanderings  in  the  Wilds  of  Southwestern 
Africa.  By  CHABLES  JOHN  ANDEBSSON.  With  numerous  Illustrations, 
representing  Sporting  Adventures,  Subjects  of  Natural  History,  Devices 
for  Destroying  Wild  Animals,  &c.  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  75. 

ATKINSON'S  AMOOR  REGIONS.  Travels  in  the  Regions  of  the  Upper 
and  Lower  Amoor,  and  the  Russian  Acquisitions  on  the  Confines  of  In- 
dia and  China.  With  Adventures  among  the  Mountain  Kirghis ;  and 
the  Manjours,  Manyargs,  Toungous,  Touzemts,  Goldi,  and  Gelyaks ;  the 
Hunting  and  Pastoral  Tribes.  By  THOMAS  WITLAM  ATKINSON,  F.G.S., 
F.R.G.S.  With  a  Map  and  numerous  Illustrations.  Svo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 


2  Valuable  and  Interesting  Works  of  Travel. 

ATKINSON'S  SIBERIA.  Oriental  and  Western  Siberia :  a  Narrative  of 
Seven  Years'  Explorations  and  Adventures  in  Siberia,  Mongolia,  the 
Kirghis  Steppes,  Chinese  Tartary,  and  part  of  Central  Asia.  By  THOMAS 
WITLAM  ATKINSON.  With  a  Map  and  numerous  Illustrations.  8vo, 
Cloth,  $3  50. 

BECKWOUETH'S  AUTOBIOGRAPHY.  The  Life  and  Adventures  of 
James  P.  Beckwourth,  Mountaineer,  Soldier,  and  Pioneer,  and  Chief  of 
the  Crow  Indians.  Written  from  his  own  Dictation,  by  T.  D.  BONNER. 

With  Illustrations.    12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

EARTH'S  NORTH  AND  CENTRAL  AFRICA.  Travels  and  Discoveries 
in  North  and  Central  Africa.  Being  a  Journal  of  an  Expedition  under- 
taken under  the  Auspices  of  H.  B.  M.'s  Government,  in  the  Years  1849- 
1855.  By  HENRY  BARTU,  Ph.D.,  D.C.L.  Illustrated.  3  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth, 
$12  00. 

BALDWIN'S  AFRICAN  HUNTING.  African  Hunting,  from  Natal  to  the 
Zambesi,  including  Lake  Ngami,  the  Kalahari  Desert,  &c.,  from  1852  to 
I860.  By  WILLIAM  CHARLES  BALDWIN,  Esq.,  F.R.G.S.  With  Map,  Fifty 
Illustrations  by  Wolf  and  Zwecker,  and  a  Portrait.  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

BURTON'S  LAKE  REGIONS  OF  CENTRAL  AFRICA.     The  Lake  Re- 

§ions  of  Central  Africa.    A  Picture  of  Exploration.    By  RICUAKD  F. 
URTON,  Captain  H.  M.'s  Indian  Army,  Fellow  and  Gold  Medalist  of  the 
Royal  Geographical  Society.     With  Maps  and  Engravings  on  Wood. 
Svo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

BURTON'S  CITY  OF  THE  SAINTS.  The  City  of  the  Saints  ;  and  Across 
the  Rocky  Mountains  to  California.  By  Captain  RIOUARD  F.  BURTON, 
Fellow  and  Gold  Medalist  of  the  Royal  Geographical  Societies  of  France 
and  England,  H.  M.'s  Consul  in  West  Africa.  With  Maps  and  numerous 
Illustrations.  8vo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

BAIRD'S  MODERN  GREECE.  Modern  Greece :  a  Narrative  of  a  Resi- 
dence and  Travels  in  that  Country.  With  Observations  on  its  Antiqui- 
ties, Literature,  Language,  Politics,  and  Religion.  By  HENKY  M.  BATED, 
M.A.  Numerous  Illustrations.  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

BROWNE'S  APACHE  COUNTRY.  Adventures  in  the  Apache  Country: 
a  Tour  through  Arizona  and  Sonora,  with  Notes  on  the  Silver  Regions 
of  Nevada.  By  J.  Ross  BROWNK.  With  Illustrations.  12mo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

BROWNE'S  AMERICAN  FAMILY  IN  GERMANY.  An  American  Family 
in  Germany.  By  J.  Ross  BROWNE.  Illustrations.  12mo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

BROWNE'S  CRUSOE'S  ISLAND,  CALIFORNIA,  &c.  Crusoe's  Islnnd :  a 
Ramble  in  the  Footsteps  of  Alexander  Selkirk.  With  Sketches  of  Ad- 
venture in  California  and  Washoe.  By  J.  Ross  BROWNK.  With  Illustra- 
tions. 12mo,  Cloth,  $1 15. 

BROWNE'S  LAND  OF  THOR.  The  Land  of  Thor.  By  J.  Ross  BROWNE. 
Illustrations.  12mo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

BROWNE'S  YUSEF.  A  Crusade  in  the  East.  A  Narrative  of  Personal 
Adventures  and  Travels  on  the  Shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  in  Asia 
Minor,  Palestine,  and  Syria.  By  J.  Ross  BROWNK.  Engravings.  12mo. 
Cloth,  $1  75. 

BUFFUM'S  SIGHTS  AND  SENSATIONS.  Sights  and  Sensations  in 
France,  Germany,  and  Switzerland;  or,  Experiences  of  tin  American 
Journalist  in  Europe.  By  EDWARD  GOULD  BUFFUM,  Author  of  "  Six 
Months  in  the  Gold  Mines,"  &c.  12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

BAKER'S  CAST  UP  BY  THE  SEA.  Cast  Up  by  the  Sea;  or,  the  Adven- 
tures of  Ned  Grev.  By  Sir  SAMUEL  W.  BAKER,  M.A.,  F.R.G.S.,  Author 
of  the  "Albert  N'Yanza  Great  Basin  of  the  Nile,"  "  The  Nile  Tributaries 
of  Abyssinia,"  &c.  With  Ten  Illustrations  by  Huard.  12mo,  Cloth,  75 
cents. 

BELLOWS'S  TRAVELS.  The  Old  World  in  its  New  Face :  Impressions 
of  Europe  in  1867,  1868.  By  HKNRY  W.  BELLOWS.  In  Two  Volumes. 
12mo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

CURTIS'S  THE  HOWADJI  IN  SYRIA.  By  GEORGE  WILLIAM  CURTIS. 
12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 


